The Other Potter
by MorningSkies
Summary: Follow the life of Victoria Potter- James' younger sister- at Hogwarts and beyond, as she is forced to battle everything life throws at her, and at her family and friends. Oh, and there's the small matter of her love for Sirius Black. SB/OC JP/LE RL/OC
1. Chapter 1

On the evening before their return to Hogwarts, Victoria Potter and her elder brother James could both be found in their parents' sitting room, restlessly anticipating the following day. James was sprawled across the rug by the fireplace, tossing a stolen Snitch between each hand, while Victoria was lying on one of the sofas, attempting to proof read a particularly tricky Potions essay that was due for their first lesson.

It was not an enjoyable task. She had somehow managed to completely forget that the essay had been set until one of her friends, Lucy Phillips, had casually referred to it in a letter a couple of days ago. As a result, the final moments of Victoria's holidays had been spent furiously reading dauntingly large textbooks and attempting to construct something that was at least vaguely coherent. Checking it over now, she wasn't entirely sure that she had been successful.

'Can you please stop that,' she snapped suddenly, as James cheered to himself after making a particularly elaborate grab at the Snitch that was trying to escape his reach.

'You've become boring this summer, Vic,' he proclaimed, tossing the Snitch into his pocket nevertheless.

Victoria surveyed her brother over the top of her essay, hoping to emulate a McGonagall style severe glare.

'The resemblance is uncanny,' laughed James as he propped himself up onto his elbows.

'In what way have I become boring?' she demanded.

'Well for one thing, you stopped me going to visit Evans last week.'

'Oh please, that was for your own good! Stalking is not an attractive quality, James.'

James didn't look the slightest bit ruffled from her comment. Victoria could only assume that years of constant rejection from Lily had made him immune to any criticism regarding his actions towards her.

Victoria liked Lily very much, the two of them having become friends after Lily had helped her with a particularly difficult Potions project last year. Since then, Victoria had taken it upon herself to try and discourage James' obsession. While she would have loved the two of them to get together, Victoria thought it incredibly unlikely; Lily considered time not spent moaning about James time wasted.

'Imagine how much time she'll have to spend with me now we're both Heads,' sighed James, smiling at the thought.

'You don't know that she is Head Girl,' Victoria pointed out, although she realised how stupid that sounded. No one else in seventh year would have had a chance at beating Lily Evans to the post of Head Girl.

Victoria herself was about to begin her sixth year, and was also a prefect. She wasn't especially looking forward to watching her brother embarrass himself with Lily in the prefects' carriage the next day.

'Anyway, where's Sirius?' asked Victoria, in a transparent attempt to change the topic of conversation. Her brother's friend had barely left their house ever since the summer following first year. His somewhat deranged mother and generally horrible family were largely at the root of this. For once, however, he was absent. In fact, Victoria hadn't seen him for over a week.

An expression of pure excitement crossed James' face, making him resemble a small child who had just been let loose in Honeydukes.

'He's only gone and bought his own flat!' exclaimed James.

'How on earth did he manage that?'

'One of his better uncles died and left him some gold. So he used it to buy a place in London, Bloomsbury I think. We're all going to stay there over Christmas. It'll be great.'

Victoria knew 'we' to mean the self-styled Marauders, which compromised James, Sirius, and their two friends Remus and Peter. Victoria had a lot of time for all of them, even though Sirius could be unbearably arrogant, and Peter annoyingly doormat-like most of the time. However, the thought of the four of them being let loose alone in London made her fear for the well-being of the city.

'You do realise that you'll have to tone down the pranks now you're Head Boy?' she pointed out.

'I know,' said James, 'I expect you to carry on my noble work.'

Victoria snorted with laughter. While far away from the goody two shoes type, she wasn't exactly in the Marauders' league when it came to causing trouble.

'Stop being such a bad influence on your sister!' laughed their mother, who had suddenly appeared in the room.

Tall, with the dark hair and hazel eyes that both her children had inherited, Catherine Potter took a surprisingly relaxed view when it came to James' behaviour. While it was true that she never failed to send howlers whenever he received detention, Victoria had long suspected that this was driven by her own fiendish humour than by any real desire to scold her son.

'You two should get some sleep,' their mother advised, 'I don't want a repeat of last year when everyone over slept and you barely made the train.'

James shrugged and picked himself up from the floor. Acknowledging the truth in her mother's words, Victoria rolled up her essay and got up from the sofa.

'Night,' she said, kissing her mother on the cheek.

Victoria jogged up the stairs to the first floor, while James headed into the kitchen in search of a drink.

Talking to her brother just then had made Victoria anxious to get back to Hogwarts. She missed everything about the castle, but mainly her friends. Lucy had been staying with family in France for most of the holidays, so Victoria hadn't seen her since the end of the previous term. She had seen some of their other friends, such as Georgina and Pippa, but it wasn't the same as living with them.

As she pulled on her pyjamas and set an alarm for the following morning, it also struck Victoria that this year would be the final one where both her and James would be at school together. It would be so strange when she was in her seventh year when she wouldn't be able to see him or Sirius every day. They might annoy her on a regular basis, but she was insanely close to both of them.

Laughing at her own overly sentimental thoughts, Victoria turned off her bedroom lights and climbed into bed. How ridiculous she was being; she had a good sixty years or so of James and Sirius yet to endure.

* * *

It seemed to Victoria that she had barely closed her eyes, when her alarm rang shrilly beside her head. As per usual, it was a mad rush to get ready in time. Both her and James' owls were incredibly reluctant to return to their cages, after having spent the summer exclusively flying around outside. Then James thought it would be funny to hide Victoria's broomstick, and by the time she'd found it, and then chased him around the house beating him with it, it was getting dangerously close to eleven o clock.

They made it just in time to kiss their parents goodbye and hurry onto the train. James immediately dashed down the corridor in search of the prefects' compartment and the victim of his obsession, while Victoria lugged her trunk along behind her, looking for her own friends.

She found them about halfway down the train. Lucy, Georgina and Pippa were convened in one compartment, accompanied by Alexander Vance and Ben Moore, two of their fellow sixth year Gryffindors. They were spread across several seats, all engaged in animated conversation about something.

Upon seeing her, Alex jumped up to slide open the door and help Victoria drag her luggage inside.

'Hello,' he smiled, brushing his floppy blonde hair away from his face.

'Vic!' squealed Lucy, bouncing up from her seat.

Lucy had been Victoria's closest friend ever since they had met on their first journey aboard the train five years ago. A few hours later they had both been sorted into Gryffindor, and the rest was history.

'How was France?' laughed Victoria, as her best friend trapped her in a bone-crushing hug that was much more painful than Lucy's slender stature should have allowed.

'Great! I have so much to tell you!'

Victoria noticed the playful glint in Lucy's expression, and wondered just how many French boys she had managed to pull over the summer. With her blonde curls and large blue eyes, Lucy was ridiculously attractive, and had always succeeded in making guys fall at her feet. As far as Victoria could remember, Sirius was the only boy at Hogwarts that Lucy had wanted and failed to get, although Victoria had never gotten to the reason behind this.

'Vic, we should head over to the prefects' compartment,' Alex pointed out.

'Yes, we should,' she agreed, 'Let's go and watch my brother embarrass himself in front of Lily.'

'Is she Head Girl?' asked Pippa, a tall girl with a lot of bouncy brown hair.

'Of course,' said Lucy confidently, 'who else would be?'

'So your brother is still fixated on her then?' questioned Pippa, a definite note of disappointment in her voice.

Trying to ignore the thought that one of her best friends might be harbouring a secret attachment to her brother, Victoria bade them all goodbye and followed Alex out into the corridor.

They walked side by side in silence. That was the thing about Alex, he wasn't one to initiate pointless conversation just for the sake of it. Victoria appreciated that trait in him, especially at those times when she'd been around the incessantly loud Marauders for too long.

The two of them were almost at the prefects' compartment, when they walked past a compartment full of seventh year Slytherins. Victoria's eyes slid to the left, and she saw Avery, Mulciber and Snape lounging across some seats, and discussing something in hushed tones. While she disliked all three of them on the basis that they were not only Slytherins but also mostly likely future Death Eaters, Victoria held a particular candle of loathing for Snape. It was true that James and Sirius had perhaps been overly mean to him in the past, but in Victoria's opinion Snape had always given as good as he'd gotten. And then there was his old friendship with Lily, something that had effectively ended after he'd called her a mudblood in front of half of the school. To Victoria, that had merely confirmed the fact that he was simply a bad person.

As if he was performing Legilimency, Snape's gaze turned to the corridor, just as Victoria and Alex passed by the window. He sneered, his black eyes boring into her. Victoria glared back and continued walking.

'It's scary, isn't it?' asked Alex.

'What is?' Victoria herself didn't find Severus Snape remotely frightening.

'The fact that those three can be so open about wanting to join You Know Who when they leave this place. Who knows, maybe they already have. It's scary that people our age can think like that, and that they don't have anyone to tell them any different.'

Victoria considered Alex's words. He could be very perceptive at times, seeing things slightly different to how others did.

'I suppose so,' she admitted, 'Imagine what it'd be like to be so full of hate.'

'I can't imagine it.'

Like Victoria, Alex was from a pure-blood family, one which- like the Potters- had little time for any of the blood mania espoused by Voldermort and his supporters. His sister, Emmeline, was two years older and was allegedly a member of Dumbledore's secretive Order of the Phoenix group. Victoria knew little about it, but she understood that it was an organisation committed to doing their upmost to combat Voldermort.

The sober mood was lifted when they arrived at the prefects' compartment. Before Victoria had even slid the door open, she could hear two familiar voices.

Lily Evans was standing up in the limited floor space between the seats, her expression as blazing as her hair, and her wand pointed directly at James, who was sprawled across one of the window seats.

'I swear to you, Potter, one more word and I will hex you so hard that you will be incapable of speaking ever again.'

James eyed the wand with a degree of wariness, and held his hands up in defence, 'Okay, okay, you won't hear another word from me Evans, although I must say that might get in the way of our roles as Heads.'

Lily ignored him and sat down gracefully in between the two sixth year Ravenclaw prefects, Nicholas and Penny.

'Hi everyone,' said Victoria, struggling to maintain a straight face.

Lily gave her a smile, and gestured to the spare seat next to Remus, who was one of the seventh year Gryffindor prefects.

'Alright, sis?' said James, leaning across Remus to talk to her.

Victoria merely rolled her eyes at him, and turned to Remus instead, 'How was your summer?'

He shrugged, 'A little dull. I did quite a bit of work. How was yours?'

James made a tutting noise to indicate his disgust at studying during the holidays, but before Victoria could respond to either of them, Lily began talking.

'So, hi everyone,' she said, with a slightly nervous smile that only served to highlight her pretty features, 'As you can probably tell, James and I are the new Head Boy and Girl'- she spared James a single look of contempt before continuing- 'I can only assume that whoever decided to appoint Potter was mentally unwell at the time. Anyway, we just need to assign duties to you all, so shout when you hear something you want. Okay, does anyone want first floor patrol duty on Mondays...'

'Ah my future wife,' sighed James, quietly enough so that Lily couldn't hear him.

'Your brother doesn't know when to quit,' laughed Alex, who had sat down on Victoria's right.

'Tell me about it. Anyway, how was your summer?' It seemed like a safe time to talk; Lily was still dishing out prefect duties.

'Good actually,' said Alex, 'It was nice to see my family again, I went to stay with my cousins in Cornwall for quite a bit of it. How about you?'

'I think I spent most of it playing Quidditch with James,' considered Victoria.

'That's nice,' said Alex, stilting the conversation somewhat. In great contrast to Victoria, who was a Chaser on the Gryffindor team, Alex had little interest in Quidditch, to the extent that he rarely even watched the inter-school matches.

'And who wants patrol of the basement on Tuesdays and Thursdays?' asked Lily.

'Oh we'll do that!' exclaimed Victoria enthusiastically, gesturing between her and Alex.

'Good call, Potter,' Alex smiled.

'Thank you,' grinned Victoria.

Basement patrol was widely regarded as one of the best prefect duties, simply because it put you in close proximity to the kitchen, and it was a common occurrence for the house elves to appear with tea and cakes.

A few minutes later, all the duties had been assigned and they were free to go. Victoria and Alex headed back down the train corridor towards their friends, excitedly discussing the coup they had just managed.

They were literally outside their friends' compartment, when Victoria suddenly found herself caught up in something that was more akin to a tackle than a hug.

'Hello, you,' she laughed, as she pulled herself free of Sirius's grip and gave him a playful shove.

'Alright, Vic? Why haven't I seen you for ages?'

'Yeah, I mean it must be what, about eight days?'

Sirius laughed, his handsome face lighting up as he did so. From an objective point of view, Victoria could definitely understand why most of the school's female population experienced varying degrees of love and lust for him.

'Alright, Alex?' asked Sirius.

Alex nodded silently. He had never seemed entirely comfortable around the Marauders; Victoria had often thought that there was just too much of a contrast between his reserved nature and their boisterousness.

'What's this I hear about a flat in London?' exclaimed Victoria.

'Oh yeah, I meant to tell you about that! Wait until you see it, it's amazing! James and I are going to turn it into an epic bachelor pad.'

Victoria snorted with laughter at the thought of James and Sirius' idea of a bachelor pad. She could imagine a room full of Firewhiskey bottles and Quidditch magazines. Her feminine input would definitely be needed when it came to decorating the place.

'Okay, I'm going to find your tosser of a brother, but I'll see you at the feast?'

'Sure,' smiled Victoria, and Sirius jogged off down the corridor.

It was only when she turned back to the window of her friends' compartment, that she noticed Lucy's eyes on her.

'Hey,' said Victoria, following Alex inside.

'Sirius seems in a good mood,' commented Lucy, in what she clearly thought was a nonchalant voice.

'Erm yeah he's fine,' said Victoria awkwardly, as she sat down between Pippa and Georgina. Sirius was the one thing in the world that she felt unable to discuss with Lucy. Last year, Lucy had developed a crush on him, but for some unknown reason he'd rejected her advances. The whole incident had rather upset Lucy, and so Victoria had tried avoiding mentioning Sirius in front of her, something which was incredibly difficult considering that she spent a significant amount of time with him.

'Is Lily Head Girl?' asked Georgina, in a clear attempt to change the subject. That was Georgina through and through, always aware of others' feelings.

'Yep,' said Victoria, seizing on this, 'If she makes it through the year without murdering my brother I'll be surprised.'

Everyone chuckled at this, including Lucy, who luckily seemed to have forgotten all about Sirius.

'I don't mean to bring everyone down, but did you all see this morning's Prophet?' asked Ben from his seat next to Pippa.

'No,' said Victoria, who had been too busy beating James with the broomstick he'd hidden to read the newspaper.

'Oh God, it was awful,' gasped Pippa.

'A couple of Death Eaters massacred an entire muggle family last night,' explained Ben, his face grim, 'including three children.'

Victoria's stomach twisted painfully. Such stories were a stark reminder of the reality that awaited them all outside the safe walls of Hogwarts.

'Do we know who it was?' asked Georgina quietly. Victoria recognised the fearful look on her friend's face; Georgina's entire family were muggles, and she lived in terror of them being the victim of an attack like the one Ben had just described. Lucy put a sympathetic arm around her.

'The Ministry was quoted saying that they're chasing several leads, but we all know that means they have nothing to go one. And even if they did, what could they do?' said Pippa soberly.

'I suppose we all need to be ready for what's out there when we leave this place,' said Ben, his eyes staring into the increasingly wild landscape that could be seen beyond the compartment window. Ben was much less serene than Alex, often radiating an air of great impatience, as if desperate to be out there fighting. This evoked both admiration and terror in Victoria.

A silence descended upon the group, which was only broken by the sound of the door sliding open a few minutes later.

It was Frank Longbottom and his girlfriend Alice Howard, two amiable seventh year Gryffindors who were among the loveliest people Victoria had ever met.

'We were just walking past, thought we'd stop and say hello,' smiled Alice.

'Sure,' grinned Victoria, 'Hey, Alex, budge up a bit.'

There was a great deal of shuffling around in order to accommodate the extra people into the already crowded compartment. Victoria found herself squeezed between Lucy and Alex, the latter of which didn't appear to mind the situation at all.

The arrival of Frank and Alice served to lighten the mood considerable, and before Victoria knew it, they were all laughing at the usual trivial matters that entertained teenagers. No matter what horror awaited them all, at least they could enjoy these moments of peace with each other.

* * *

By the time the Hogwarts Express pulled into Hogsmede Station, a strong burst of rain was pelting the village and everyone in it. Unsurprisingly, the usual mad rush to unload luggage and fight for the first places on the horseless carriages ensued. In the chaos, Victoria found herself in a carriage with James, Sirius and- to her brother's total delight- Lily Evans.

'Oh dear God,' muttered Lily as she climbed into the carriage and realised who was already seated there.

She actually made to clamber back out, but was prevented from doing so by it starting to move. Scowling, she took a seat next to Victoria and angrily folded her arms across her chest.

'Alright, Evans?' asked James in what he evidently considered to be a nonchalant voice.

'Do not talk to me,' snapped Lily, 'I still can't believe they made you Head Boy.'

'Well, you see Evans, unlike you, most people understand my amazing qualities. Good looks, humour, intelligence...'

'Modesty?' interjected Lily.

'Well this is fun,' remarked Victoria to Sirius, as James and Lily continued to bicker.

Sirius winked at her, 'Tell me about it. What were you doing with Alex earlier anyway?'

'We're both prefects. And he's my friend,' Victoria reminded him, somewhat taken aback.

'He definitely has a thing for you,' commented Sirius.

'What's that?' asked James sharply, breaking off his conversation with Lily.

'Don't be ridiculous!' spluttered Victoria, 'Alex does not like me! We're just friends. He's no different with me than he is with Lucy and the other girls.'

'Is this Vance?' asked James, 'I never liked that one.'

'What a surprise,' said Lily sarcastically.

'When did you notice this?' demanded James of Sirius.

Sirius shrugged, 'Don't know, I've just thought it for a while.'

'Okay!' interrupted Victoria loudly, 'First of all, James this has nothing to do with you, and don't be so ridiculous, you've never had an issue with Alex. Second of all, the two of us are just friends, and I can assure you that that is all we'll ever be.'

'Well said,' smiled Lily, 'Although I do have to agree with Black on this one.'

Victoria sighed in exasperation and rolled her eyes, entertaining herself with the absurd concept of her and Alex Vance ever being more than friends.

* * *

As soon as the carriages stopped outside the castle, Lily said goodbye to Victoria and hurried off before James could even attempt to follow her.

'I'm telling you, this year will be the year that Lily Evans and I finally get together,' he assured Victoria and Sirius as they crossed the Entrance Hall and headed into the Great Hall.

'Whatever you say, mate,' laughed Sirius, while Victoria merely snorted with derision.

The three of them walked past the other house tables to reach the Gryffindor one, and took seats at it. They were soon joined by Remus and Peter, as well as Victoria's friends who she had managed to lose in the chaos of disembarking from the train. She was pleased to notice that Lucy and Sirius were perfectly cordial to one another, and exchanged friendly greetings. She less pleased, however, to notice James throwing suspicious looks at Alex; she would need to put a stop to Sirius' theory before it had the chance to snowball.

'How are you, Peter?' she asked, turning to the boy on her left in an attempt to ignore her brother.

'Fine thanks,' he replied in his usual squeaky voice, 'Summer was so boring. I hate being stuck with my family.'

Victoria had never met Peter's parents, although she had frequently heard him complain about them. He had no siblings, and seemed to resent having to spend any time at home, which was probably why he tagged along with the other Marauders for most of the holidays.

'Tell me about it,' sighed Pippa, flicking her long hair over her shoulder, 'I couldn't wait to get back here.'

'Well I for one have finally properly moved out and bought my own place,' grinned Sirius, 'You're all invited to the future weekly parties of course.'

'Why have you bothered buying somewhere when you're here most of the time?' inquired Alex.

Sirius' smile faded somewhat and his eyebrows contracted, 'Because I wanted to and because I could.'

Alex didn't press the matter, but instead took a sip of pumpkin juice.

Victoria noticed that Sirius continued to stare at him for a few moments, his nature ensuring that he wanted to carry on the debate rather than let it drop.

Luckily, Ben chose that moment to bring up Quidditch.

'So when are Quidditch trials, James?'

Ben had been a Beater on the Gryffindor team since third year, and he was incredibly good at it too. Sirius was the other Beater, his utterly reckless nature ensuring that he had no fear of the bludgers. Victoria, James and Pippa made up the Chaser positions, but they had lost their prized Seeker, Richard, who had finished Hogwarts last year. The team's keeper, Jordan, had also recently left.

'I was thinking of holding them this Saturday,' said James, 'I want to get us training as quickly as possible. I'm not optimistic about finding anyone of Richard and Jordan's standards though.'

'Keith Fielding might make a good keeper,' reasoned Sirius, 'he's so broad he'd block all the hoops without moving.'

'Or Ryan Clark,' suggested Victoria, thinking of a fifth year Gryffindor who was built in a similar way.

'We'll see,' said James, 'To be honest, it's the seeker position that I'm more concerned about not being able to fill, and we really need to trash Slytherin again this year.'

They all glanced across to the Slytherin table. The whole lot of them just seemed remarkably unpleasant thought Victoria, even if you didn't know that they were all wannabe Death Eaters. Her gaze fell on Snape, Avery and Mulciber, and her sentiments were merely reinforced.

'Don't worry, we'll manage it,' she assured them all confidently.

With that, Professor Dumbledore got to his feet and began making his traditional start of term speech. This was quickly followed by the arrival of the usual delicious food.

Victoria helped herself to a bit of everything, despite her and Lucy having worked their way through an enormous stack of cauldron cakes a mere couple of hours ago.

'Do our parents not feed you?' laughed James, as he took in the amount of food on her plate.

Victoria ignored him and took a bite of steak and kidney pie. A long bout of flying would be needed tomorrow or else she ran the risk of ballooning to the size of Professor Slughorn, but right now she couldn't care less.

The feast was thoroughly enjoyable thanks to the food and company, but by the time it was over she was well ready to climb into her bed, which no doubt would have had a warming pan placed in it by the house elves.

However, before that luxury, she, Alex, Remus, James, Lily and the rest of the Gryffindor prefects had to shepherd the first years to the Tower. It wasn't particularly difficult work since they all seemed to believe that safety was in numbers, and so walked along in a tight huddle.

'I'm sure we were never this small,' Alex laughed to Victoria, as they reached the portrait of the Fat Lady.

James heard this and raised his eyebrows at Victoria. She responded by sharply poking her brother with her wand. Damn Sirius for starting such a ridiculous rumour.

Once all the first years had been directed to their dormitories, Victoria said goodnight to the boys, and headed up the staircase to her own familiar dorm, the door of which now bear a label saying _sixth year girls. _

Lucy, Pippa and Georgina were already inside, pulling on pyjamas and climbing into their respective beds.

Victoria walked over to her own bed, opened her trunk and reached for her favourite pair of pyjamas. As she got into bed, chattering away with her friends, she truly felt as if she were at home. This year was going to be amazing, she would make sure of it.

* * *

**So I hope the first chapter was okay! It would be great if you could leave me a review and let me know what you thought.**

**The eventual plan is for this to develop into a romantic story between Victoria and Sirius, but there will obviously be multiple bumps along the way. There will also be quite a bit of James/ Lily, as well as a bit of romance between some of the other characters. **


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

'Wake up, Potter!'

Victoria did wake up upon hearing her name, and it was not at all a pleasant experience.

'What the hell is wrong with you?' she groaned through a face full of pillow.

For some unknown reason, Lucy had jumped onto her bed and was gently beating her with a pillow in order to wake her up. It was ridiculous for a person to be this chirpy at this time in the morning.

'You need to get up,' insisted Lucy, ceasing the attack and lightly landing on her feet beside Victoria's bed, 'We have our first class in twenty minutes.'

Victoria sat bolt upright in bed and glanced around the room. Sure enough, Lucy, Pippa and Georgina were all fully dressed, looking annoyingly well prepared for the morning's lessons.

Muttering furiously, Victoria reluctantly got out of her comfy, warm bed and began searching for appropriate clothes. In her sleep hazed state everything seemed much trickier than usual.

'Still not a morning person, Vic?' laughed Pippa, as the girls watched Victoria put one pink sock and one orange sock on.

'Not quite,' Victoria sighed a few minutes later, as the four of them headed out of the dormitory together.

The common room was busy with people leaving for breakfast, or cramped over tables finishing summer homework that had been left right until the last minute. The girls joined the queue for the portrait hole, and considered what the term's lessons would have in store for them.

'I heard that Potions is the worst at NEWT level,' offered Georgina, who had jumped at the chance to drop her least favourite subject as soon as their OWLs had finished.

'Great,' muttered Lucy sarcastically, who- like Victoria- was continuing with Potions this year, 'Maybe we should befriend Snape.'

'We're not that desperate yet,' Victoria reassured her, 'And just think, Luce, no more Divination or History of Magic to sit through.'

Lucy smiled at the thought, 'No more pretending to listen to Binns drone on about goblin wars.'

'Hey, I'm still doing that,' sniffed Georgina.

Unlike every other Hogwarts student that had ever existed, Georgina found History of Magic absolutely fascinating. True, she did find Professor Binns tedious like the rest of them, but she also made up for the poor quality of teaching by spending hours pouring over ancient looking books.

'Remind me why we're friends with you again?' joked Lucy.

'Because I'm amazing,' replied Georgina simply.

They reached the Great Hall and weaved their way to the Gryffindor table, where Alex and Ben were already seated, eating bacon sandwiches and chatting about the morning's Prophet.

'Where have you girls been?' asked Ben in an exasperated voice, 'The post arrived ages ago. We had to save yours.'

'Vic was doing her usual zombie routine,' explained Georgina, taking an envelope from Ben, whom she had sat down next to.

'Hmph,' muttered Victoria, still not feeling completely awake. She consoled herself by constructing a highly satisfactory fried egg sandwich that served to improve her mood greatly.

'Who's the letter from?' she asked Georgina.

'Oh it's from Will. He's just writing to wish me luck for the new term. He doesn't go back up until next week, and he's been away at a friend's.'

Georgina's brother, Will, was a year older and attended an extortionately priced male boarding school from which the majority of the muggle government appeared to be drawn. Victoria had met him on several occasions when she'd visited Georgina; he was lovely, if a tad assured of himself.

'Here comes McGonagall,' pointed out Alex, as their Head of House moved down the table distributing timetables.

The whole process was something of a performance this year, due to everyone in the group having to have their OWL grades checked against their subject application forms.

Victoria and Lucy had chosen the exact same subjects: Potions, Transfiguration, Charms, Herbology and Defence against the Dark Arts. They had only ever confessed to each other their shared dream of joining the Auror department once they'd finished school. Both of Victoria's parents were in the profession, and so she wanted to keep her ambition quiet until she was completely sure.

They all finished their breakfast, chattering about the usual start of term things, until the bell rang for first lesson.

Georgina and Pippa disappeared off to Arthimacy, while Victoria, Lucy, Alex and Ben headed down to the dungeons for double Potions. There were a fair few people down there, so clearly not everyone shared Georgina's views on the subject. Leona and Stephen, two Hufflepuffs with whom Victoria was fairly friendly; five Ravenclaws, Nicholas, Patricia, Sophie, David and Clive, none of whom Victoria had spent much time with; and finally, two Slytherins, Phillip Bernard and Michael Hunt, both of whom Victoria actively disliked on principle.

The latter two scowled at the newly arrived Gryffindors.

'Where's your Mudblood friend?' asked Hunt casually, while Bernard leant against the dungeon wall and smirked.

It took the combined strength of Victoria, Lucy and Alex to prevent Ben from reaching for his wand and cursing Hunt into oblivion; Victoria had seen her friend at work in DADA and didn't think it'd be good for him to commence the term with an attempted murder.

Luckily, Slughorn chose that exact moment to open the classroom door and beckon them inside, all the while completely oblivious to the altercation. Hunt and Bernard strutted in before everyone else, sniggering to each other.

'I swear, one more word from either of them about Georgina and you won't be able to hold me back,' breathed Ben furiously.

'Calm down!' said Alex in a sharper tone of voice than Victoria was used to hearing from him, 'There's no point fighting here, save it until we're out there and it matters.'

'This matters,' insisted Ben, scowling and ducking into the classroom.

Alex followed him, while Victoria and Lucy brought up the rear, exchanging concerned glances. Ben's wand-first, questions-later attitude was very similar to that of James and Sirius, and, just like them, it had never failed to get him into trouble over the years.

The four of them clustered around a table, with Ben remaining in a bad mood for the entirety of the lesson. The whole situation ensured Victoria herself was highly distracted, and she barely heard most of what Slughorn was saying. She perfectly understood Ben's anger at people like Hunt using such derogatory terms, but she also agreed with Alex that Ben needed to save his energy.

Not for the first time, Victoria found herself wondering what would happen to them all when they left Hogwarts and inevitably found themselves involved in the real battle that was going on out there. She had an irrational desire to gather all her friends and family together in one place and never let them leave, keeping them safe.

'Are you okay, Vic?' asked Alex quietly when the double lesson ended, and they began heading up to the common room for a free period; Victoria hadn't such much for the entire time that they had been in the dungeons.

She shrugged, not being able to find anything else to say. She was well aware that she was being mildly ridiculous, and she didn't particularly want to share this with Alex. Thankfully he didn't press the matter.

'Game of chess?' he suggested, smiling out of the corner of his mouth.

'Sure,' agreed Victoria; the two of them had been engaged in a furious contest to see which of them was the best player ever since first year.

The Gryffindor common room was fairly empty when they arrived, only containing sixth and seventh years with free periods. Georgina and Pippa were already there, seated at a small table and tackling a pile of daunting looking Arthimacy books. Ben immediately bounded over and took a chair next to Georgina.

'Vic!'

Victoria turned towards the fireplace and noticed the Marauders all crowded there, looking as suspicious as usual.

'What are you guys up to?' she asked, heading over to them; Lucy and Alex, meanwhile, went to join the others.

James pulled a face of mock hurt, 'My dear sister, it pains me that you always believe the worst in me.'

'Yeah, right. Seriously, what are you doing?'

Her eyes fell on a piece of tattered parchment in Sirius' hand.

'Oh don't tell me you're working on that stupid map again?'

Sirius and James exchanged looks of outrage, while Peter chuckled and Remus rolled his eyes.

'Don't you have anything better to do with your time?' persisted Victoria; she enjoyed causing a bit of trouble as much as the next Hogwarts student, but she had to marvel at just how focused her brother and his friends were on mayhem.

'Better things to do with our time?' asked Sirius incredulously, 'Victoria, what could be more important than ensuring our legacy will inspire the future troublemakers of Hogwarts?'

'Do you want a list?'

'Sometimes I think we can't possibly be related,' said James, while Peter laughed sycophantically in the background.

'Actually,' said Sirius, 'I quite fancy going for a fly. Anyone up for it?'

'Sure,' said Victoria and James simultaneously, causing Peter to chuckle again.

'Well that was scary,' commented Sirius.

'Oh actually, I can't,' said James.

'Are you feeling okay, Prongs?' asked Sirius, looking genuinely concerned for his friend's health.

'Alright, can someone please explain these stupid nicknames to me?' exclaimed Victoria irritably. She had long wanted to know just where the names Prongs, Padfoot, Moony and Wormtail came from, but whenever she asked it was always treated as some kind of national secret.

'Sorry, Vic,' said Remus, in a voice that made it clear he would not be persuaded otherwise.

'Yeah, I can't play Quidditch,' continued James, in what Victoria considered to be a highly transparent attempt at steering the conversation away from their ridiculous names, 'Because I have Head duty with Evans in a few minutes.'

'Should have known,' sighed Victoria, 'You wouldn't miss Quidditch for anyone else, including me.'

'Wait, you wouldn't miss it for me?' asked Sirius, his expression one of mock hurt.

James pretended to consider the matter for a moment, 'It depends. Normally I'd say no, but if you were at St Mungo's or something maybe I'd only play half a match.' He paused and thought about his words for a moment. 'Actually, sorry Padfoot, but even then I'm not sure I could do it.'

'Ah, nothing like friendship,' said Sirius, climbing to his feet, 'Still up for it, Vic?'

'Sure,' said Victoria, who knew that flying would definitely improve the glum mood that had engulfed her since the issue with Ben and the Slytherins before Potions.

'That's the spirit,' grinned Sirius, 'Free periods are intended for this. Fact.'

Remus snorted to indicate scepticism, and picked up a textbook that he had obviously discarded earlier.

It was only when Victoria and Sirius were wandering down to the Quidditch pitch, laughing about various things, that she realised that she was supposed to be playing chess with Alex.

* * *

As was custom for the start of term, the first week flew by in a haze of introductory talks, long evenings catching up with friends, and detentions for the Marauders.

'You really need to tone it down now you're Head Boy,' insisted Victoria over breakfast on the Saturday when Quidditch trials were due to be held.

She was sitting at the Gryffindor table with her fellow Chasers, James and Pippa, and the two Beaters, Sirius and Ben. Lucy, Georgina and Alex were all enjoying the privilege of a lie-in, but had promised to make an appearance to watch the trails later that morning.

'Yeah, yeah,' muttered James, who Victoria could tell wasn't really listening to her.

On the previous Thursday, the school had come down to breakfast as normal, only for the Slytherins to discover that their table was laden with piles and piles of carrots, rather than the normal porridge, toast, bacon and eggs. Somehow- and Victoria still wasn't quite sure how this had been accomplished- the Marauders had snuck into the kitchens and caused the problem. Sirius had assured her that no house elves had been harmed in the process, but that offered little comfort.

'That was hilarious,' said Ben, smiling at the memory of the eventful breakfast, 'Hunt and Bernard's faces were priceless.'

'Have you ever wondered that this kind of thing might be exactly what puts Lily Evans off of you?' questioned Victoria, as she leaned over Pippa to help herself to bacon.

'Absolutely not, she appreciates humour,' insisted James stubbornly, although he appeared to consider his sister's words.

The sudden arrival of the post prevented anything else from being said on the matter. The _Daily Prophet _was delivered to Ben and Sirius, while Pippa received a letter from her parents.

'Everyone's okay at home,' she said, the relief in her voice unmistakable.

Both of Pippa's parents had attended Hogwarts, and were both Muggleborn. As such, she lived with a similar fear of them being targeted to Georgina's concerns about her own family being the victim of a random Muggle attack. Victoria had met Pippa's parents on several occasions, and they had always struck her as the most capable kind of people. However, she could still sympathise with Pippa's worries.

'Have you heard anything from Mum or Dad, Vic?' asked James, clearly thinking along similar lines to his sister.

'No,' said Victoria, 'Have you?'

'Not yet,' said James, 'But you know how busy they've been at the Auror Office, I'm sure that's just it.'

'Yeah,' agreed Victoria, grateful at his attempt to avert her concerns; Victoria knew for a fact that James worried immensely about their parents, since the nature of their work inevitably placed them on the front line.

'Let's talk about something nicer, shall we?' suggested Sirius in what Victoria understood not to be a callous suggestion, but due to a desire to ease his friends' worries; she flashed him a thankful smile, which he returned.

'So who's trying out today, James?' asked Ben.

James consulted a piece of parchment that rested on the table before him.

'Okay, so obviously the Keeper position is vacant, and it seems quite popular. Keith Fielding and Ryan Clark could be promising. Can't imagine either of them living up to Jordan's standard though.'

'Positivity, James,' Pippa reminded him.

'Right,' James agreed, 'So then a handful of people want to try out for a Beater position. Although I'm confident you two won't have anything to worry about.' He gestured to Sirius and Ben. 'Again, there's competition for the Chaser positions, but nothing that should be a concern to Vic and Pippa.'

He sighed and placed the paper back on the table, 'It's the Seeker position that I'm worried about.'

Ben and Pippa shared his grimace, and Victoria thought about Richard, their previous Seeker who had graduated last year. Richard had been in a different league entirely, and had never failed to win them a match. He'd practically had to beat off offers from other clubs with a stick, having set his heart upon the Montrose Magpies reserve team.

'I don't think we need to worry about that,' insisted Sirius, who looked strangely confident and relaxed about the matter.

'Whatever,' said James, giving him an incredulous look, 'I'll save that one until the end so it doesn't put a damper on things-'

He broke off, his attention having been caught by something else. Victoria followed his gaze and, sure enough, saw Lily Evans walking alongside the Gryffindor table to join her friends.

'Alright, Evans?' asked James casually, as she reached them.

Lily gave him a withering look so strong that it would have discouraged anyone else without fail.

'I see carrots aren't on the menu, this morning.'

Both Sirius and James snorted with laughter at the memory of their recent prank.

'I knew you'd find it funny,' grinned James.

'Actually I found it incredibly childish,' said Lily, and with that as her parting comment, she continued down the table to join her friends.

'I'm going to resist the urge to say I told you so,' said Victoria, returning to her bacon.

* * *

Half an hour later, Victoria, Pippa and Ben were standing on the Quidditch pitch, clutching their broomsticks and observing the approach of what seemed like the entire school. Meanwhile, with Sirius' assistance, James was attempting to organise those who wanted to try out into groups.

'What's Alex doing here?' she asked Pippa and Ben in surprise, as she noticed his figure accompanying Lucy and Georgina; Alex's apathy towards Quidditch was famous.

'A sudden love for the sport,' said Ben in a tone that Victoria couldn't determine whether it was sarcastic or not.

'How long do you think it'll be before those two get together?' asked Pippa, as they watched Ben practically skip across the pitch towards Georgina.

'I give it a month,' suggested Victoria.

'Two weeks. Fancy making it interesting?'

'Ten Sickles?' laughed Victoria.

'You're on.'

'What are you talking about?' asked Georgina, as she, Lucy, Ben and Alex reached them.

'Nothing,' insisted Pippa, a little too quickly.

'So who's going first?' asked Lucy, taking a bite from a stack of buttered toast she was carrying in a napkin. In direct contrast to Alex, Lucy couldn't get enough of Quidditch, even if she preferred to enjoy it from the ground.

'Beaters I think,' said Victoria, 'Then Chasers, Keeper, Seeker. Anyway, what are you doing here, Alex?'

'I thought I'd better come and support you all,' he smiled, his words seemingly focused on Victoria, rather than on Ben or Pippa. Victoria shifted uncomfortably on her feet; what if Sirius' theory about Alex had been correct? He certainly was encouraging her to believe it.

A whistle was suddenly blown, effectively pulling Victoria out of her thoughts.

'Right, everyone,' began James, shouting to make his voice carry across the busy pitch and stands, 'I want all those trying out for Beater to do a lap of the pitch...'

The trials progressed slowly but steadily. To no one's surprise, both Ben and Sirius won back their positions as Beaters, having each made particularly excellent hits at the bludgers. This decision wasn't popular with some of the rejected candidates- one of whom looked close to attacking James with the bat- but was definitely the right one.

The Chaser try-outs followed. Since he was captain, James automatically had a place, but Victoria and Pippa both had to re-try for theirs. Victoria scored the most goals, with Pippa very close behind her. The rest of the hopefuls weren't much competition, except for a fourth year girl, Maggie, who flew brilliantly and only scored one less goal than Pippa.

'We've definitely found my replacement for next year,' commented James, as he watched Maggie dismount her broom and good naturedly join her friends to watch the rest of the trials.

Next up were the Keeper trials, which took significantly longer than the previous two. James had the half a dozen candidates each take it in turns to attempt to guard the goalposts, while Victoria and Pippa tried to get the quaffle past them. As predicted, it came down to a competition between Keith Fielding and Ryan Clark, with the former ultimately winning the position. While it was true that he lacked the brilliance of their previous Keeper, there was undoubtedly potential there.

Finally, it was time for the Seeker try-outs, and James' mood was gradually deteriorating. Only four people tried out for the position and they were all rather awful at it. One of them could barely fly, let alone catch a miniscule ball whilst doing so.

Lucy swore loudly from the edge of the pitch, where she, Victoria, Pippa, Georgina, Ben and Alex were watching the disaster unfold.

A group of Slytherins, that had come to watch the trials and attempt to cause as much trouble with the Gryffindors as possible, heard her and laughed. Victoria noticed that Hunt, Bernard, Avery, Mulciber and Snape were amongst them. Hunt and Mulciber were both Beaters on their house team, and Bernard and Avery were clearly there to mock the hated Gryffindors, but Victoria was surprised to see that Snape had accompanied them. He seemed to make a point of avoiding anything to do with Quidditch as much as Alex normally did. Snape noticed her staring, and shot her a look of pure venom, which she returned gladly.

'They shouldn't be allowed down here,' muttered Ben.

'Stop it,' said Alex in a warning tone of voice.

Georgina, however, was on Ben's side. 'I can't wait until they're all officially Death Eaters and we're allowed to fight them.'

Victoria and Alex exchanged highly surprised glances at her words. Victoria could only assume that Georgina's concern for the well-being of her family was prompting such an attitude.

Luckily, a distraction arrived in the shape of Sirius, something which caused Lucy to turn a delicate shade of pink and begin a conversation about their Herbology homework with Alex.

'Vic, you should try out,' said Sirius, getting to the point quickly.

'I already did,' she reminded him.

He rolled his eyes as if talking to a small child that had failed to understand his words, 'No. I mean you should try out as Seeker.'

'Why?' chocked Victoria.

'Because I know you're really good at it,' insisted Sirius, rolling his eyes once more.

Victoria took a moment to reply. At the risk of becoming as arrogant as her brother, she knew there was truth in his words. She had often played the role of Seeker when playing Quidditch with James and their friends during the holidays. Victoria possessed great reflexes, that was the root of it.

'I think he's onto something there,' said Ben slowly, as though a matter of great significance was slowly dawning on him.

'But I'm a Chaser!' insisted Victoria, 'Who else would fill my spot?'

'Maggie,' said Pippa quickly, 'She's not as good as you, but she's definitely good enough. Much better than those useless guys.'

She jerked her head to the pitch, where one of the Seeker hopefuls had just managed to fall off his broomstick in mid-air.

'Just give it a go, Vic,' insisted Sirius, 'I know that you would have gone for the position before if it hadn't have been for Richard.'

'That's true,' interjected Lucy; clearly this was such an important matter that she could overcome her embarrassment over Sirius for it.

'You're not even on the team!' protested Victoria, who had a horrible feeling that she was fighting a losing battle.

'Exactly. I'm providing the spectator opinion.'

'There you go,' said Sirius, gesturing to Lucy.

Victoria's hazel eyes found Sirius' dark ones. She needed to read his expression, to see whether he was truly being sincere, or if this was merely an elaborate Marauder joke.

'Are you serious?' she asked him.

'That's my name,' he laughed, breaking into his trademark wide grin.

Victoria couldn't stop a smile playing at the corners of her own mouth.

'Oh fuck it,' she said, and with that, she grabbed her broomstick and hurried across the pitch towards her brother. Behind her, she could hear her friends cheering and the group of Slytherins booing.

James was surrounded by the other hopefuls, clearly losing the will to live.

'Okay, so I think we'll keep it simple. Whoever catches the most golf balls has the spot...'

'James, I'm trying out,' said Victoria quickly before she could convince herself otherwise.

James clapped a hand to his forehead, 'Of course. Damn, why didn't I think of that? Was it Sirius' idea? He's never going to let me forget this.'

'Let's get going, shall we?' insisted Victoria, who was well aware that they had the crowd's undivided attention, and was rather self-conscious about it. What if she crashed and burned now, and was forever mocked for her failed attempt?

James mounted his broom and kicked off the ground. Victoria and the others who were trying out for Seeker followed suit, rising to the same level as him. Then, without warning, her brother produced a large bag of golf balls from thin air, and began tossing them all over the pitch.

Focus, Victoria told herself, as she darted after one and only just managed to catch it between the tips of her fingers. That was easier said than done, though, because she could hear the jeers from the Slytherins even up in the air. For once she wished Ben would lose it and jinx the lot of them.

After what seemed like an age- even though it was probably only ten minutes- James blew the whistle and they all descended to the ground. It didn't take long to deduce that Victoria had caught the most golf balls, and by quite a large margin as well.

'Brilliant, Vic,' smiled James, 'You've got the spot.'

The other candidates exchanged apprehensive glances but didn't say anything, and headed off to the stands.

For the first time in living memory, James hugged his sister.

'Steady on,' she said, once he'd released her, 'People might start to think we actually like each other.'

James smiled, ignored her, and jogged off towards the stands to find Maggie.

Victoria grinned to herself and walked back over to the edge of the pitch where she'd left her friends. She couldn't quite believe it. She was the Gryffindor Seeker! How the hell had this happened? Of course she had the legacy of Richard to live up to, but that seemed irrelevant at that moment. She was the Gryffindor Seeker! It was only now that she realised just how desirous she always had been of the position.

'What did we say? What did we say?' exclaimed Lucy excitedly as Victoria reached the group.

She couldn't stop a reluctant grin from spreading across her face. This was such a good feeling!

'Well done, Vic!' said Alex, hugging her tightly.

Victoria froze somewhat at the touch, remembering her thoughts from earlier. But then, suddenly, she was relaxing. Alex was a nice person to hug. He was warm and broad, with an unmistakably air of reliability.

'Shall we go and get some lunch?' he suggested, 'You must be starving.'

'Yeah, okay,' she agreed, and the two of them walked back up to school together. Victoria didn't shut up about the trials and, for once, Alex seemed incredibly interested in his least favourite sport.

* * *

**So I hope the eventual dilemma between Alex and Sirius is gradually beginning to take shape! Also, I can promise quite a bit on the progress (or lack of) of James/ Lily in the next chapter. **

**Thanks to everyone who favourited/ followed, and thanks to Codename Jellybean, overlordred and Natto 'n' aliens for the reviews. **

**Please leave me a review and let me know what you thought of the the chapter! :) **


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three **

During the week that followed the Quidditch trials, Victoria found herself spending increasing amounts of time with Alex. While they had always been friends and hung out as part of a group, there was something fundamentally different about it now, or at least that was how it appeared to Victoria.

Victoria wasn't quite sure who instigated it or how it came about, but during that week, the two of them would spend break times chattering away in the courtyard together, and could often be found in the common room or library helping each other as they ploughed through the immense volume of homework that the sixth years were receiving.

But equally, Victoria was enjoying this strange turn of events. Alex was great company, always there when he'd said he would be, always friendly, always helpful. He even put up with her incessant Quidditch talk, a subject which she hadn't ceased discussing ever since she had somehow become Seeker.

It was only on Thursday, when Victoria took her usual seat next to Lucy in the afternoon's Transfiguration lesson, that she realised just how much one-on-one time she'd been spending with Alex.

'Hello, stranger,' grinned Lucy, as Victoria dropped into the chair next to her; desks in the Transfiguration classroom fitted two students, and Alex and Ben were sitting on the opposite side of the room, while Pippa and Georgina shared a spot near the front.

Victoria smiled apologetically as she rooted around in her bag for a textbook and writing materials.

'Don't give me that,' laughed Lucy, 'I don't mind. I just want to know what's going on with you and Alex, that's all.'

'Nothing,' said Victoria truthfully.

Lucy opened her mouth to respond, but was prevented from doing so by Professor McGonagall, who had began to talk herself. Lucy waited until McGonagall had set them all some tricky theory work, then lowered her voice and resumed the conversation.

'You've spent loads of time with him recently,' Lucy pointed out accurately.

'I know,' shrugged Victoria, keeping her voice at a whisper, so not to attract their teacher's attention, 'I enjoy his company. We have fun.'

Lucy gave her a shrewd look, analysing her expression carefully.

'I don't think you like him as much as you think you do,' she said finally.

Victoria paused for a moment to determine whether that made sense or not, before asking Lucy to explain.

'Well,' began Lucy, with the air of someone gearing herself up for a long winded speech, 'I think you like spending time with him and are confusing that with _like _liking him.'

'I don't know if I like him that way or not,' insisted Victoria.

'Maybe,' continued Lucy, 'But he likes you, so be careful. You don't want to harm your friendship.'

'How do you know he likes me?' spluttered Victoria, 'And I swear this is only a recent development anyway.'

'Pippa and I were discussing it last night, and she said that Ben had practically told Georgina that Alex likes you.'

'So you've all been having nice little chats about me, have you?' huffed Victoria, feeling unfairly aggravated.

'Everyone in the school has been talking about it,' said Lucy bluntly, 'I bumped into your brother yesterday and he tried to cross-examine me on it. Luckily Remus was there to rescue me.'

Victoria's stomach squirmed uncomfortably. The last thing she wanted was the entire student body of Hogwarts speculating about her and Alex. Nothing had happened between them for goodness' sake, and Alex hadn't even told her that he was interested- the whole thing was just hear say at the moment. Could two friends spend some time together without being labelled a couple? Apparently not, thought Victoria darkly; damn the dirty minds of her fellow students.

'Anyway, tell me about your latest male victims,' insisted Victoria in a widely transparent attempt to shift the conversation away from her own love life.

Lucy shrugged and copied out a line from her textbook.

'There's not really been anything recently.'

Victoria raised her eyebrows in what she hoped was a sceptic way, 'Oh, really?'

'Yep,' insisted Lucy, 'I'm being honest when I say that I've not fancied anyone for ages, not since...'

Her voice trailed off and Victoria knew she was talking about Sirius. Lucy had harboured a flame for him last year, but he had turned down her suggestion of a date. The whole affair had rather shocked anyone; he'd been the first boy in living memory to reject the advances of Lucy Phillips.

'Hey, Phillips!'

Victoria and Lucy both turned round to see Hunt leering at them, while Bernard laughed along.

'What?' snapped Lucy in the harsh tone of voice she reserved solely for Slytherins.

'If you want some help getting over the last guy, just let me know.'

'Getting under more like,' sniggered Bernard, nudging Hunt in the ribs.

Both Victoria and Lucy had pulled out their wands before the boys could so much as blink. Naturally, this caused something of a commotion amongst the previously silent class, and Professor McGonagall soon hurried over.

'What is the meaning of this?' she asked, her eyes taking in Victoria and Lucy's wands and furious expressions, as well as Bernard and Hunt's smug looks of satisfaction; the latter two clearly thought that they'd managed to get Victoria and Lucy in trouble.

'They were going to attack us, Professor,' drawled Hunt, grinning horribly at the girls.

'We were provoked!' shouted Victoria angrily, 'Professor, you should have heard what they said to Lucy.'

'Lower your voice, Miss Potter,' said McGonagall sharply, 'And put your wands away, both of you.'

'I think that deserves at least fifty points being taken away, Professor,' suggested Bernard.

McGonagall turned her steel gaze onto him and Hunt.

'That is enough, Bernard! You two should do well to remember that if you behave disgustingly then people are bound to retaliate. For your sakes you should be glad that this happened within the classroom of a teacher who doesn't want her lesson interrupted,' she paused and surveyed all four of them, before returning her gaze to Bernard and Hunt, 'Otherwise, I'm afraid to say boys, that I'd pity your chances.'

And with that, McGonagall snapped at the class to get on with their work, and returned to her own desk.

'I think she may have just become our most brilliant teacher,' laughed Lucy.

* * *

The rest of the lesson passed without incident, and Victoria was not sorry when the bell rang to signal dinner. She was very much looking forward to the evening, since James had scheduled Gryffindor's first training session of the term; Victoria was itching to get to grips with her new role on the team.

She and Lucy packed away their things and made for the classroom door, where Alex, Ben, Pippa and Georgina were waiting for them.

'What did Bernard and Hunt do?' asked Ben immediately.

'Oh they were just their usual rude selves,' Victoria reassured him.

'You should have seen their faces when we pulled out our wands,' laughed Lucy.

Ben's expression did not relax, and Georgina looked just as angry as he did.

'They should just round up the whole lot of Slytherin House and expel them,' she huffed, 'Surely the teachers notice that they are always at the root of every issue?'

Victoria slowed her step somewhat, and allowed Lucy to respond instead. She didn't have the energy to deal with Ben and Georgina's attitude. Yes, Victoria agreed with a lot they said, but it was a source of constant worry to her that her friends seemed willing to throw themselves into the first available fight.

'Are you alright?' asked Alex, who had also walked slower so that he was next to Victoria.

'Oh yeah,' she said, 'Don't worry, I can handle a couple of stupid Slytherins.'

'What have the Slytherins done now?' came a loud voice.

Victoria and her friends had reached the Entrance Hall just as James, Sirius, Remus and Peter got to the bottom of the main staircase, apparently having just enjoyed a free period.

'What have the Slytherins done?' repeated James, jogging over to join his sister, with Sirius shortly behind him.

Victoria briefly explained the altercation that had happened in Transfiguration, taking care to omit what Bernard and Hunt had actually said; Georgina and Ben would probably charge straight up to them, wands blazing, if they heard.

'Bastards,' muttered James, 'You know what, I bet this is all a tactic to undermine our Quidditch team. Yeah, that'll be it. They'll want to try and rile us up and distract us from training.'

'Quidditch isn't everything,' Alex reminded him.

James and Sirius shared disgusted looks with one another.

'Keep that attitude up, Vance, and I may object to you trying it on with my sister,' threatened James, before heading off into the Great Hall with the rest of the Marauders.

A very awkward silence followed in his wake, with Victoria not daring to look directly at Alex. Thankfully, Pippa began chattering about the evening's Quidditch training, allowing Victoria to join in the conversation and hope that Alex hadn't heard what James had said.

She couldn't resist sneaking covert glances at Alex during dinner, however. He definitely looked somewhat uncomfortable, Victoria decided, as she watched him toy with a steak and kidney pie. But that could mean that he didn't like her and didn't want anyone to think that he did, as much as it could signal his embarrassment at people having found out about his feelings.

Victoria felt very awkward herself, and struggled to eat her own dinner, despite knowing full well that she'd regret this after a long and tiring training session. She also found it difficult to join in the conversation around her, even though Pippa and Ben were leading an animated discussion about Gryffindor's chances in this year's Quidditch Cup.

Thankfully, a distraction arrived in the form of her brother making an idiot of himself.

Everyone was working their way through the apple crumble, when Lily Evans marched alongside the Gryffindor table, red hair billowing behind her, and her face holding an expression that clearly showed she had something unpleasant to do and that she was planning on getting it over with as quickly as possible.

'James, we need to meet and discuss the prefect duties. The Slytherins are complaining that they've got the worst jobs and some of them are refusing to do them.'

'I love it when you say my name, Evans,' replied James, giving her what he obviously considered to be his best smile.

Lily took a deep breath, as if to calm herself, and pressed on as though he hadn't said anything.

'So, I was thinking we could meet tomorrow evening. Eight o clock in the common room?'

'It's a date,' confirmed James.

'No, it definitely is not,' clarified Lily.

'Okay if you'd prefer to keep it quiet, then we can tell these guys that it's not,' conceded James, waving a hand in the general direction of his fellow Gryffindors, 'But you and I will know the truth.'

Lily's expression was conflicted. She was evidently torn between the sensible decision to walk away and leave James to his fantasies, and the desire to put him straight. James, however, took the choice out of her hands.

'What do you want to call our first child, Evans?' he mused.

'Right, Potter!' shouted Lily so loudly that Peter jumped a foot in the air out of shock, 'For the hundredth time, I am not and never will be your girlfriend. Even if hell froze over, or if you were the last man left on Earth, I would rather be alone than ever go out with you.'

And with that, she turned on her heel, and strutted out of the Great Hall. Victoria could not help but admire her; the girl had style.

'Well that could have gone worse,' joked Sirius good-naturedly.

'Shut up, Padfoot,' snapped James, in a highly uncharacteristic sharp tone of voice.

He returned to his pudding, looking thoroughly annoyed. Meanwhile, Victoria noticed Sirius and Remus exchange mildly concerned looks. Peter merely gawped at James with his mouth open.

'That was interesting,' muttered Lucy in a quiet voice so that James didn't hear her.

'When is your brother going to give up?' Georgina asked Victoria in an incredulous voice.

'God knows,' said Victoria, shaking her head in exasperation. However, as she did so, she couldn't help but take in her brother's stance and expression; he looked utterly dejected. Victoria had a sudden desire to give him a hug, something they had both avoided on principle for a good ten years.

'Okay team, let's get to practice,' said James about five minutes later in a normal tone of voice that in no way fooled Victoria; Lily's reaction had definitely upset him.

James, Victoria, Sirius, Pippa and Ben all stood up, and Pippa waved down the table to Keith and Maggie in order to catch their attention as well.

'Oh!' sighed Lucy suddenly, 'Vic, this means I'm going to have to work on the Draught of Living Death theory on my own! Alex has already finished it, and you and Ben have practice.'

'Sorry, Luce,' said Victoria genuinely. She didn't envy anyone who had to spend their night pouring over Potions theory.

'Draught of Living Death, did you say?' Remus called down from his seat next to Peter.

'Yeah, do you know anything about it?' Lucy said, leaning round Alex.

'Moony only went and got a 'O' on that piece of homework last year,' snorted Sirius in jest, 'Slughorn got very excited with him.'

'Do you want some help?' Remus asked Lucy, ignoring Sirius.

'Brilliant. As long as you don't mind?' smiled Lucy gratefully.

Remus shrugged, 'Anything to avoid actually doing NEWT work. I've become a master of procrastination recently.'

'Right team, let's get going,' said James, clapping his hands together, 'Get a move on, Keith.'

'See you later,' Victoria said to her friends still seated at the table.

'Have a good practice,' smiled Alex.

To her absolute horror, Victoria was unable to respond to this. Instead, she felt herself turn a horrible shade of pink, and had to be ushered away by Pippa.

'I was definitely right about him,' commented Sirius, once they had reached the safety of the Entrance Hall.

Victoria turned to face him, ready to use her best glare. However, Sirius was in no way assuming a gloating expression. In fact, he looked rather haughty and bored as he spoke, as though the matter was beneath his concern. She frowned at his attitude, and turned back to Pippa.

'How was Arthimacy?' she asked her.

Pippa pulled a face, 'Not fun. It's gotten so tricky all of a sudden. Of course Georgina is finding it all a piece of cake.'

'I bet she is,' smiled Ben happily, 'I don't think I've ever seen Georgie struggle with anything.'

Victoria and Pippa exchanged amused glances behind his back.

'I still give them two weeks,' hissed Pippa.

* * *

By the time they reached the pitch, dusk was beginning to engulf the grounds. The team hurried into the changing rooms and quickly dressed in their scarlet robes. They collected their brooms which they stored in various lockers, and all headed out onto the pitch.

'What's the plan, boss?' asked Sirius.

'Right, I was thinking we should-' James broke off, looking highly distracted by something, '-erm sorry... yeah... anyway, I think we should start with some basic flying. We've not used the pitch for a good few months after all.'

'Is he alright?' whispered Victoria, edging over to Sirius.

Sirius frowned at his best friend, 'I don't know. Hey, Prongs! Everything okay?'

'Is the pope Catholic?' replied James.

'Erm,' said Sirius.

'Sorry, just a muggle expression I picked up,' said James, waving this away, 'And yes, he is, if anyone was wondering.'

Sirius turned to Victoria, 'Yep, Prongs is just being his usual weird self.'

'Where do these stupid nicknames come from?' exclaimed Victoria in frustration.

But Sirius merely winked at her and soared into the air.

To begin the training session, James led the team on a series of basic flying exercises. They completed five laps of the pitch, practised weaving in between one another, and each did a mid air loop-the-loop for good measure.

'Good,' smiled James, clapping his hands together, evidently reassured that his team were at minimal risk of falling off their brooms in the middle of a match.

'Now, Keith and Maggie, I want both of you to have plenty of practice. Let's see-' James looked around at his team, clearly thinking for a minute. '-Okay, Maggie, Pippa and I will try and score against Keith. Maggie, I want you in particular to try and shoot as many goals as possible. Ben, you can practice knocking the bludgers as far away from us as possible. Vic, you need practice catching the Snitch. I'll let it out of the box, and then I want you to keep catching it and then letting it go so you can do it again. Sirius, you can hit bludgers at her to distract her.'

'You want me to hit bludgers at our Seeker?' asked Sirius somewhat sceptically.

'Well obviously don't try and hit her!' sighed James exasperatedly, 'I can't go through the stress of finding another Seeker. Just try and hit them into her path to make it more difficult.'

'Glad you're more concerned about finding another Seeker than your sister's well-being,' laughed Victoria, rolling her eyes.

James ignored her and dived to the ground where the box contained the Quaffle, Bludgers and Snitch was waiting. He released all four balls and then blew his captain's whistle to indicate that they should all get started. Keith accelerated towards the goal posts at one end, while Pippa and Maggie both sped towards the Quaffle.

'Try not to knock me out or anything, Sirius,' Victoria reminded him with a laugh, as she began circling the pitch, searching for the elusive Snitch.

'I wouldn't dare, Alex would be after my blood.' He said it in a joking way, but there was a very subtle edge to his voice that Victoria only just picked up on. She couldn't fathom what was bothering him. Maybe he'd had a hard day with his lessons.

Anyway that didn't matter right that minute. Victoria tried to shut everything else out, wanting to be entirely focused on finding the Snitch. She was very conscious about what the crowd would be like during their first match. Bernard, Hunt, Snape and the other Slytherins who had been jeering at the try-outs had spread the news that she was Gryffindor's new Seeker far and wide. This had been matched by the same Slytherins wondering out loud whether James was merely filling the team with people that he liked, rather than with those who could actually fly. Considering all this, Victoria felt under great pressure for a Gryffindor victory in their upcoming match against Hufflepuff. If they won, then her position as Seeker and James' choice of team members would no longer be in dispute.

Focusing on catching the Snitch, however, was made more difficult by the fact that Alex kept cropping up in her thoughts. She wasn't quite sure how this situation had come about. Last term, they had been friends and nothing more. Yet she'd returned to Hogwarts this term to immediately be confronted by rumours that he liked her. And his recent behaviour definitely hadn't discouraged such theories.

The issue was that Victoria simply didn't know how she felt about Alex. On the one hand, he was one of her closest friends, and was the text book perfect guy; he was lovely, clever and funny. He was also rather attractive, with his tall frame and floppy blonde hair. And yet something held her back. Victoria was a big believer in passion, and she just didn't know if she could feel that with Alex. But was there anyone else she could feel that with?

'Sirius!'

A bludger had just whizzed past her face, inches away from her nose.

'I'm really sorry, Vic,' he said hastily, flying over to her to check she was okay, 'I didn't get a good grasp of it and it went a bit too close.'

'No worries,' she said honestly, 'It-'

But she had just seen a shimmer of gold that served to completely distract her. Victoria angled her broom handle to the ground and went into a fast dive, chasing after the Golden Snitch that was dancing before her.

She was getting too close to the floor of the pitch, and the Snitch was still slightly beyond her grasp. Pull up, a voice in her head told her; she was going to collide with the ground very painfully any moment now. But Victoria ignored this, and carried on with the dive. She was mere inches from brushing the grass of the pitch when she felt her fingers close around the struggling ball. Feeling completely jubilant, Victoria sharply pulled out of her dive, and soared upwards across the pitch.

'Yes, Vic!' yelled Sirius in triumph.

He sped his broom towards her and grinned broadly. 'I told you that you'd make a great Seeker.'

Still ecstatic from her daring catch, Victoria half threw herself onto Sirius' broom and hugged him.

'Steady on, Vic,' he laughed, 'What do I get if we win the match?'

'I guess we'll have to wait and see,' she retorted, winking at him.

'Victoria Potter! I'm shocked at you! I thought you were all lovely and innocent.'

Victoria laughed, 'Well I'm lovely, I'll give you that.'

Sirius threw his head back and laughed heartily, his handsome face lighting up as he did so.

'Oi!' bellowed James from across the pitch, 'Victoria, one good catch does not make a victory. And Sirius, you're supposed to be trying to knock her off her broom!'

Without planning it, Victoria and Sirius both saluted him and called out, 'Yes, Sir,' at the same time. Of course, this merely caused them to collapse with laughter for a second time.

'Don't make me come over there!' yelled James in annoyance.

* * *

Apart from James' occasional outbreaks of temper, the practice was a great success. Keith had proved him to be a great find, having made some spectacular saves. Victoria's personal favourite had involved him dangling in the air, one hand on his broom, the other gripping a goal post, while he head butted the Quaffle halfway across the pitch.

Maggie too had performed brilliantly, to the extent that Victoria suspected she might have feared for her own position had she still been playing Chaser.

Most unusually, however, James did not bask in the team's success. Last year, good practice sessions had invariably been followed by rousing speeches on how they were sure to destroy the Slytherin team in the fight for the Cup. That evening, however, he congratulated them all, but then disappeared into the captain's office within the changing rooms.

No one else seemed to have picked up on much, apart from Sirius, who shrugged unconcernedly when Victoria asked him if he knew what was wrong with her brother.

'You know how he gets sometimes, Vic. I promise he's fine.'

The rest of the team were buzzing with anticipation now that their first training session had gone so well. Keith and Maggie in particular looked very pleased for themselves, and practically skipped back up to the castle together.

'Coming, Vic?' asked Pippa, as she, Ben and Sirius waited by the changing room doors.

Victoria shook her head and gestured to the captain's office, from which James was yet to emerge. 'I'll catch up with you guys in a bit.'

She watched them wander up to the castle for a moment, smiling at Pippa's highly animated story of an especially trick pass she'd made a few minutes previously.

Once they were out of earshot, Victoria walked over to the captain's office and pushed open the door without bothering to knock.

James was sitting at the desk that took up most of the floor space in the small room, looking completely fed up by something.

'Great practice,' she commented, perching on the edge of the desk since the room lacked a second chair.

'Yep, you were all great,' confirmed James, 'Hufflepuff won't know what's hit them.'

Victoria sighed, 'Can you just tell me what's wrong? I don't have all night.'

As she knew it would, this immediately caused James to talk; he had never been one to be shy about discussing himself, and over the years he and Victoria had revealed the majority of their secrets and feelings to each other.

'It's Lily Evans,' James admitted, watching Victoria as though expecting her to laugh; she didn't.

Seeming somewhat encouraged, James continued. 'She really isn't interested in me. In fact, I'd say she practically hates me. I just don't know how to impress her. I've tried everything.'

Victoria took a moment to consider her answer.

'Okay, first of all, Lily doesn't hate you.'

Victoria did sincerely believe this to be true. Towards the end of last term, she had accidently overheard Lily, Alice Howard and Mary Macdonald discussing who they considered to be the best looking boys in Hogwarts; Lily had volunteered James, and had then proceeded to discuss how much she liked his hair for a good five minutes.

'Really?' James looked very excited upon hearing this.

'Calm down,' Victoria said quickly, 'She might not hate you, but she definitely doesn't like you. Well, not at the moment, anyway.'

'Why not? What's not to like?'

'This is exactly it!' sighed Victoria exasperatedly, 'I know you're joking, but Lily doesn't. She thinks you're incredibly arrogant, and she doesn't find that attractive.'

'So you think that I need to-' James took a deep breath, 'Grow up a bit.'

'Yes,' said Victoria, glad that he had caught on so quickly, 'And I'm not saying that if you do then Lily will fall in love with you or anything, but you might be able to become friends with her.'

James appeared to consider this for a moment.

'You know what, Vic? You're brighter than you look.'

'Why thanks,' snapped Victoria sarcastically.

'No problem,' laughed James, 'seriously, thanks though.'

'Don't worry about it,' she smiled, and turned to leave the room. She was at the door, however, when she swung back to face her brother.

'Hey, James? Mind if I ask you some advice now?'

'Go ahead, I'll treat you to some of my pearls of wisdom.' He noticed Victoria's raised eyebrows, 'Damn, modesty is hard. Erm, okay, I meant that I'll try and help you out if I can.'

She perched on the edge of the desk again and took a deep breath.

'What do you think about Alex? Do you think he likes me? Should I go for it? What if it wrecks our friendship?' She said this all very quickly, without taking a breath.

James frowned for a moment, clearly thinking things through.

'Okay,' he began, 'First of all, yeah, Alex probably does like you. It's pretty obvious actually, at least it has been this term at any rate.'

Victoria opened her mouth but then realised she had nothing to say to this, and so she remained silent and closed it.

'But,' continued James in a warning tone, 'I'd be careful if I were you. The two of you are good friends and if something goes wrong then it could wreck your group.'

Victoria frowned, 'But surely that's always the risk you take it you are two friends who decide to try for something more?'

'Well yes,' said James slowly, 'But I think you should only take that risk if you really like each other, and I don't think that you're that into Alex. You've not even spoken to him about any of this, for god's sake! Nothing has actually been confirmed by him!'

'I know, I know,' Victoria assured him, 'I just wanted to get your opinion in case it turns out that he does like me.' She took a deep breath. 'I think I do like him a bit.'

'Really?' questioned James, one eyebrow raised.

'Yes!' protested Victoria, 'Or at least I think I do. How can anyone be sure if they like someone?'

'Oh you'll know,' James assured her, 'I'm just saying, don't rush into anything that you might regret. And who knows, you and the person you're meant to be with could meet soon.' He paused, and a small smile played around his lips. 'Or maybe you've already met.'

'I see what you mean,' sighed Victoria.

The conversation might not have resolved anything, but it definitely encouraged her to think. She loved Alex dearly as a friend, and she would not risk that for anything, not even the chance of something more.

'I don't think we've been so open with each other for a while,' laughed James after a few moments.

'You're right,' grinned Victoria, 'Thanks big bro.' And before he could do anything to stop her, Victoria had jumped off the desk and embraced James in a tight hug.

'Alright, alright,' he said, patting on the back with some alarm, 'Let's not get too carried away.'

* * *

**Hope you liked the chapter! Please leave me a review and let me know what you thought. Also, massive thanks to the lovelies who have followed/ favourited/ reviewed so far. **

**Despite James' words of wisdom, this isn't the end of Victoria/ Alex. In fact, it may just all come out into the open in the next chapter. I can also promise more Sirius, and also James attempting to act mature in front of Lily. **


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

'You know, I'm seriously considering making a break for it,' mused Pippa over breakfast the following morning.

'Explain,' prompted Victoria, as she leant round Alex to take a bowl of porridge.

'Double Arthimacy this morning!' groaned Pippa, gently banging her head against the wooden table.

Rolling her eyes, Georgina grabbed Pippa to try and stop her doing this.

'Stop it! You'll give yourself brain damage!'

'Well more than you already have,' reasoned Ben.

Pippa vented her feelings by seizing a piece of toast from Georgina's plate and throwing it at him. It missed the target by several inches.

'I worry for Gryffindor's chances if your aim is like that when we play Hufflepuff,' laughed Ben, retrieving the bread from the bench and stuffing it into his mouth.

'One more word from you, Benjamin, and you won't be able to sit on a broomstick for that match!' snapped Pippa.

'Why do you do Arthimacy if you hate it that much?' asked Alex, taking a bite from his bacon sandwich.

'Yeah, come and join our lovely Potions class,' laughed Victoria, 'Plenty of Hunt and Bernard and other Slytherin scum to pass the time with.'

Pippa rolled her eyes, 'Whatever. I just need to pass the damn subject and it'll be fine. You know I want to be a curse-breaker for Gringotts, and the stupid place wants Arthimacy.'

'Yeah, funny subject for a bank to want,' commented Lucy lightly.

The rest of them sniggered, but not too loudly; Pippa's mood clearly wasn't to be tested at the moment.

The group spent another ten minutes or so lounging at the breakfast table, when the bell rang for first period. Victoria, Alex, Lucy and Ben headed down to the dungeons for Potions with Slughorn, while Georgina was forced to half- drag a very reluctant Pippa to their Arthimacy lesson.

To Victoria's annoyance, Hunt and Bernard were already outside the classroom, lounging against the stone wall as if they owned the place. Both of their eyes simultaneously narrowed, and they exchanged matching evil grins as the Gryffindors approached.

'Good Quidditch practice, last night?' asked Hunt in a mock casual voice.

Victoria and her friends completely ignored him, and instead resolutely faced each other rather than having to look at the two Slytherins.

'Only we heard that the team has gone downhill recently,' continued Bernard, clearly probing for a reaction, 'You know, what with Potter only filling it with people he likes.'

'Ignore him!' urged Alex quietly, as Ben visibly flexed his hands, evidently imaging holding his wand within of them and blasting the Slytherins into atoms.

Of course neither Bernard nor Hunt failed to notice this, and it only served to increase their antagonism. Hunt looked at his friend, as if seeking confirmation, and then glanced back at the Gryffindors with a sly expression on his face.

'I'll save a bludger for you, Moore, when we play each other,' laughed Hunt. Then he paused, and lowered his voice, 'Or maybe I'll save one for your Mudblood girlfriend.'

It was a very good job that Ben was positioned furthest away from the Slytherins because it meant that Victoria, Lucy and Alex managed to grab hold of him before he could launch himself at Hunt.

'Don't you dare say a word about Georgina!' hissed Victoria to the Slytherins, as she grappled with Ben's wand arm.

'You and your brother are just as bad, Potter. Both blood traitors,' spat Bernard, 'Oh and your boyfriend.'

'What?' asked Victoria, temporarily thrown by his choice of word.

'Black,' explained Bernard, 'You go well together. Both traitors to the pure-blood name.'

Victoria was stunned for a moment, as she tried to process why on earth Bernard would think she and Sirius were together.

'Sirius isn't my boyfriend,' she finally said, feebly.

'Sure he's not,' smirked Bernard, 'Snape doesn't seem to think so. His exact words were "how can so much arrogance fit into one relationship?"'

'I couldn't care less what Snivellus thinks,' said Victoria coldly, using the nickname that she'd heard her brother and Sirius use on countless occasions.

'All you blood traitors are going to get what's coming to you soon,' pressed Hunt, 'I'd personally love to take care of your brother and Black.'

Without really being aware of what she was doing, Victoria let go of the still- struggling Ben and yanked her wand from her pocket. She aimed it right between Hunt's eyes, and was pleased to see a flash of clear, unadulterated fear flicker across them.

'What is going on here?'

Professor Slughorn had just opened his classroom door to find himself confronted by a scene of utter chaos. Victoria was standing inches away from the two Slytherins, her wand still gripped tightly in her right hand. Meanwhile, both Lucy and Alex were continuing to wrestle with a still-furious Ben, who was doing all he could to try and throw them off and reach for his own wand.

'Nothing, sir,' said Bernard in his most oily voice.

He and Hunt shared a glance and then headed into the classroom. They clearly had no desire to get the Gryffindors into trouble; they wanted the opportunity to taunt them again as soon as possible.

Slughorn paused on the threshold of the room, before shaking his head and following the Slytherins into the dungeon; it could not have been more evident that he had absolutely no wish to get involved in whatever altercation had occurred in his absence.

Victoria pocketed her wand, breathing heavily. She felt someone touch her arm, and saw Alex looking down at her, his expression full of concern. Behind them, Lucy swore softly, while Ben, who had finally been released, muttered in a quiet voice. 'I'm going to kill them. I promise you, one day I'll kill them.'

* * *

By the time Victoria threw herself into an armchair by the fire that evening, she felt as though she had been awake for a week. The entire day had been completely draining, beginning with the commotion after breakfast, and ending with her being bitten by several vicious plants in Herbology because she had been so distracted.

Apart from Georgina and Pippa, who were both in the library pouring over their Arthimacy homework, the rest of her friends appeared to be in a similar mood to Victoria. Ben was sitting in a chair, huffing away to himself, Lucy had gone straight to bed, and Alex was seated at a table flicking aimlessly through a book on Transfiguration theory. His eyes, however, kept glancing up from the text and darting towards Victoria.

Victoria leant back in her armchair and closed her own eyes, appreciating the warm glow of the burning fire. In no way did she regret threatening Hunt and Bernard with her wand. In fact, she was fully aware that she might have gone as far as hexing them had Slughorn not chosen that exact moment to emerge.

The comments about James and Sirius, and the prospect of someone trying to hurt them had just made her lose control completely. And then there were the taunts about her and Sirius being a couple. Where on earth had that come from? While it was true that they spent a lot of time together, relations between them were always clearly platonic. Weren't they?

'Vic?'

Victoria reluctantly opened her eyes at the sound of her name, and came face to face with the glittering green of Lily Evans' own irises.

'Can I ask a massive favour?' pleaded Lily.

'Sure,' said Victoria, sitting up in her chair, 'What's wrong?'

Lily sighed deeply and launched into an explanation at rapid speed. 'The prefect patrols have been entirely messed up. The seventh year Ravenclaws are supposed to be patrolling the Entrance Hall tonight, but now they're saying they've been given a load of Transfiguration homework for tomorrow morning. And the Hufflepuff fifth years are meant to be doing the First Floor but one of them is ill and the other one is refusing to do it alone.'

She sighed again, and collapsed onto the arm of Victoria's chair.

'And you want me and Alex to do one of the patrols?' guessed Victoria.

'Would you?'

'Of course,' agreed Victoria. In reality it was the very last thing she wanted to do, but Lily had perfected a puppy-eye technique that was impossible to say no to.

'Thank you so much!' exclaimed Lily, beaming happily, 'So do you mind doing the First Floor? And then I suppose James and I will do the Entrance Hall.'

Victoria looked over towards the Marauders, who were grouped together at a table near Ben, laughing loudly about something.

'Have you asked him yet?'

Lily took a deep breath and raised her voice, 'James! You and I need to patrol the Entrance Hall in a few minutes.'

Victoria watched as James raised his head and immediately lost the humorous expression that had been playing across his face. Instead, he assumed a look of total nonchalance as he replied to Lily.

'No problem, Lily. I'll be over in a moment.'

And with that, he turned his attention back to Sirius, Remus and Peter.

'Oh, okay, thanks,' said Lily quietly, looking incredibly confused.

Victoria couldn't blame her. It must have been the first time that James had failed to ask her out whilst they were conversing.

'Are we doing patrol then, Vic?' asked Alex, who had wandered over to them whilst Lily had been distracted by James.

'Sure,' sighed Victoria, getting up from her chair, 'Coming Lily?'

Lily nodded but her eyes were still on James, who was once again engaged in animated conversation with his fellow Marauders. Victoria couldn't help but smile to herself at this. James had clearly taken her advice on board, and it was clearly working. Now all he had to do was somehow keep up the mature facade during his and Lily's patrol.

'James!' she called over to her brother, unable to keep a note of amusement from her voice.

Sirius looked up at this, and glanced around.

'Why are you ditching me, Prongs?' he muttered irritably, 'I can't cause chaos with Moony and Wormtail.'

'Too right,' agreed Remus, who seized on the opportunity to retrieve a heavy textbook from underneath his chair. Peter, however, merely looked somewhat down-trodden.

'Fancy a quick fly, Sirius?' asked Ben suddenly.

'Sure,' agreed Sirius, his good mood returning.

'Make sure you two get some Beater practice in,' warned James sternly, as he headed over to where Victoria, Alex and Lily were waiting.

'But of course,' said Sirius, giving James an ironic bow and then dashing up the spiral staircase to retrieve his broomstick.

'Let's get going,' said Lily, gesturing towards the portrait hole.

Victoria, Alex and James followed her, stepping out into the corridor beyond. As the four of them descended some stairs, Victoria couldn't help notice that James kept his distance from Lily. Instead, he strolled along with his hands in his pockets, whistling as though he hadn't a care in the world.

'So, we'll see you two later,' said Lily, as they reached the First Floor corridor, and she began heading down the main staircase, 'And thanks again for doing this.'

'No problem,' said Victoria and Alex at the exact same time. They both looked at each other and burst out laughing.

James threw his sister one meaningful look, before following Lily down towards the Entrance Hall.

'So, where shall we start?' asked Alex, clapping his hands together; they had never patrolled this corridor before.

'Maybe we should just walk up and down for a bit?' suggested Victoria half-heartedly, 'Make sure no one's around who's not supposed to be.'

'Hmm, or we could just sit down and be lazy?' he gestured towards a nearby window sill, which was big enough to accommodate a couple of people.

'Oh go on then,' agreed Victoria, who really couldn't be bothered to pace up and down a corridor all night, 'We'll hear if anyone's around here anyway.'

The two of them wandered over to the window and perched themselves on the ledge. It was quite nice actually, thought Victoria, as they sat in silence for a few minutes, basking in the moonlight that was flittering in through the glass.

'Can I talk to you about something, Vic?' asked Alex, in a quiet voice.

Victoria's stomach dropped so violently she was surprised that she managed not to be sick. She didn't know if she was ready to have this talk with Alex, because she still had no idea how she felt about him.

'Vic, are you okay?'

'Sure,' she stuttered, wondering if what she said was actually true or not.

'You know what Bernard said earlier?'

'Yes,' said Victoria slowly, guessing where this was going.

'Is it true? About you and Sirius, I mean?'

'Of course not!' exclaimed Victoria, 'He's my brother's best friend. Sure, we get on really well, and he spends most of the holidays at my house, and we're on the same Quidditch team-' She paused for a moment and considered her words; wow, she and Sirius really did spend a lot of time together. '-But no, Sirius and I are just friends.'

'I'm glad to hear it,' said Alex softly.

Victoria turned her body towards him, and looked up into his face. The moonlight gave his floppy blond hair a silver glow, and his skin almost glistened. Sitting there, at that moment, Victoria forgot all about Sirius, and the fact that they were supposed to be on a prefects' patrol. In fact, she forgot about everything.

And suddenly, their lips were touching. Victoria couldn't have said who made the first move, but someone must have, because they were kissing. Actually kissing. She was kissing Alex Vance.

Victoria's hands brushed up his chest to rest on his shoulders, which felt delightfully broad under her fingers. Meanwhile, Alex's arm was around her back, pulling her close to him, while his other hand rested at the back of her head, his fingers stroking her thick, black hair.

They pulled apart, breathless and grinning.

'Wow,' said Alex, leaning back against the window pane and looking thoroughly dazed.

'Yep,' agreed Victoria, closing her eyes for a moment.

'I really like you, Victoria,' he whispered.

'When do you start feeling that way about me?' she replied, in an equally quiet voice; she seemed to have lost her nerve since they'd stopped kissing.

Alex seemed to consider the matter for a moment.

'I'm not really sure,' he admitted slowly, 'I suppose I've always thought you're beautiful, and we've been great friends for years. But something definitely changed for me over the past few months. It's hard to explain.'

Victoria tried to keep herself from blushing. She couldn't remember anyone ever calling her beautiful before. Well, obviously her parents had done, but that didn't count. Sirius sometimes said 'hey beautiful' when he saw her, but again that didn't mean anything. Plus, Victoria had never really been serious or romantic with a boy before. Yes, she'd had dates to Hogsmede and sneaky kisses in the corridors between classes, but nothing important, nothing real.

Was this thing with Alex- whatever it was- real?

'Do you think you'd want to go out sometime?' asked Alex, in a slow, hesitant voice, 'We could maybe go to Hogsmede together? The first trip is a week tomorrow.'

Victoria stared at him. Her lovely, attractive friend who was looking at her as though she were something amazing. Slowly, she nodded.

'I'd like that.'

And because she had no clue what else she was supposed to say, Victoria leant forward and kissed him again, her eyes fluttering shut as she did so.

* * *

Victoria had no clue how long the two of them sat there for. It could have been ten minutes, but it might just as well have been two hours. They would kiss for a while, and then break apart, chattering away about the usual trivial stuff they spoke about.

Alex really was a good kisser, noted Victoria, as he lips moved against hers with particular vigour. She could quite happily do this all-'

BANG!

The two of them broke apart as a loud noise echoed beneath their feet. People were shouting too, although their words were unidentifiable.

'What the hell?' exclaimed Alex, jumping to his feet.

Victoria did the same, only she also pulled out her wand.

'It's coming from the Entrance Hall,' she said, straining her ears to pick up more noise; something told her that this was a little more than one of Lily and James' fights.

'Stay here!' said Alex urgently, grabbing hold of his own wand.

'No chance!' scoffed Victoria, and she took off at a sprint, Alex close at her heels.

As they ran down the main staircase, a scene of utter chaos met her eyes.

Standing in the middle of the Entrance Hall, back to back, with broomsticks discarded at their feet, were Sirius and Ben. Both of them had their wands out, and were indeed using them. Five Slytherins were circling the them, also armed. Bernard, Hunt, Snape, Mulciber and Avery. Hexes were flying everywhere, and it was impossible to see who was hitting who.

The rational part of Victoria's mind knew exactly what she should do. She should run for the nearest teacher who could put a stop to this right away. Slughorn was only a floor below in the dungeons, after all.

However, as she watched Snape aim a jinx at Sirius, all reason was knocked from Victoria's thoughts. Instead, she jumped the last five steps, ran towards the group, and screamed _'Protego!'_

It must have been the sheer terror at the thought of Sirius being in any way hurt that made her spell so strong, because not only did she manage to deflect Snape's hex, but also that of the other four Slytherins. They all stared, dumb- founded at the new arrival, and put down their wands.

'What, can't you cope with four against five?' hissed Ben, 'I bet you always like to outnumber the people you sneak up on in the dark and attack.'

'Are you okay?' urged Victoria, as she reached Sirius.

'Fine,' he breathed, as he glared at Snape who, Victoria was pleased to notice, was sporting several hex marks across his face.

'What's going on?' yelled another voice suddenly.

Victoria spun round to see James sprinting towards them, his wand at the ready, and Lily hot on his heels.

Snape noticed the pair of them and his scowl deepened. He swore viciously at James in greeting.

'Don't!' warned Victoria, as she felt Sirius start towards him. She took hold of his wand arm and tried to hold onto it tightly.

'Don't bother, James,' said Lily, looking coldly at the Slytherins, 'They're not worth it.'

Victoria noticed Snape's expression as she said this. For just one second, the anger and resentment seemed to melt away, to be replaced by a look of pure pain. Yet, as quickly as this had occurred, his usual mask of venom slid back into place. Victoria felt a malicious surge of pleasure at this. Snape had no one to blame but himself for having lost Lily.

'I'm not going to,' James reassured Lily. He turned to the Slytherins. 'Five against two. How brave. I'm sure McGonagall will agree when I tell her tomorrow morning.' He paused and spared them all glares, before settling his eyes upon Snape. 'The most pathetic thing is that I'm sure Sirius and Ben could easily have handled you anyway.'

'Too right,' muttered Ben, who was also looking at the Slytherins with a gaze of disgust.

'Come on,' muttered Mulciber and, following his lead, Snape, Avery, Bernard and Hunt skulked off down to their dungeon common room.

Victoria waited until they were out of sight before lowering her wand and letting go of Sirius' arm.

'What the hell happened?' demanded Lily.

'Ben and I had been flying and they were waiting for us in here,' sighed Sirius, 'We definitely could have taken them.'

Lily ignored this and turned to James, 'I told you patrolling the corridors was a bad idea! We should have stayed in the Entrance Hall!'

'You're probably right,' agreed James in a calm, level voice that Victoria couldn't help but smirk at; clearly even a battle with some future- Death Eaters wasn't enough to dampen his attempts at being mature in front of Lily.

'Good Shield Charm, by the way, Vic,' said Sirius, 'I knew I could count on you to be my knight in shining armour.'

'Yeah, it was really good,' interjected Alex rather pointlessly, causing everyone to look at him.

'Oh and good self control, Prongs,' continued Sirius, as if no one had spoken, 'I think that's the first time you've had your wand out in Snivellus' vicinity and resisted the urge to hex him.'

'Personal growth,' shrugged James, while Lily snorted sarcastically; he ignored her.

'Right, I'm going to bed,' huffed Ben, 'I've had way too much Slytherin scum for one day.'

'Maybe you should go after him,' Victoria suggested to Alex, as Ben stomped up the stairs, looking thoroughly annoyed.

Alex hesitated, his eyes flickering between Victoria and Sirius, whom she was still standing next to, but he nodded nevertheless and jogged up the staircase after his best friend.

'You know, maybe we should go and report this to McGonagall now,' suggested Lily to James, 'It was pretty serious after all.'

'Fine,' he nodded in agreement.

The two of them waved goodbye and also headed up the staircase, leaving Victoria alone with Sirius.

'I'm so tempted to go after Snivellus and the others,' hissed Sirius, glaring in the direction of the stairs that led down into the dungeons.

'Sirius Black! Don't you dare!'

Sirius turned back to Victoria, looking thoroughly surprised at her raised voice, something which was usually solely reserved for James when he had wound her up to far.

Without really thinking what she was doing, Victoria flung her arms around Sirius and hugged him tightly.

'Don't you ever do something stupid like that!' she muttered angrily into his ear.

Sirius moved his head and looked down at her, unable to keep a slight grin from crossing his face.

'I promise, Vic. I wouldn't want to get on the wrong side of you.'

'Clever boy.'

Sirius laughed and tightened his arms around her, while she rested her head on his shoulder. At that moment, Victoria felt entirely at ease. She knew it was ridiculous and child-like, but it seemed that if she held onto Sirius, she could stop him from getting hurt.

A comical image of her lying on the floor and wrapping her arms around his leg while Voldermort fired the Killing Curse everywhere ran into her mind.

'What are you laughing at?' chuckled Sirius, his lips brushing the top of her head, where they were resting.

'Nothing, nothing.'

* * *

**So first of all, sorry that this chapter was a bit shorter than usual. I perhaps should have written more, but I just felt as though this was the right place to finish.**

**Also, I hope that Victoria isn't coming across as too mean- she's honestly not trying to string Alex along. **

**Thirdly, someone mentioned that I've yet to include Regulus in the story. I can tell you that he will be making an appearance in a couple of chapters' time, as was always intended. However, that review did point out an error, namely that I perhaps should have mentioned him being in some of the sixth year classes. I will go through and change this when I get time. **

**Anyway, as usual, a massive thanks for reading. Please leave me a review and let me know what you think about the story so far. **


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

By the time Victoria got up to the sixth year girls' dormitory that night, Lucy, Pippa and Georgina were all fast asleep, much to her disappointment. She had so much to tell them. There was the fight, the fact that she'd somehow managed to produce an incredibly powerful Shield Charm, oh and there was the kiss with Alex.

Victoria looked at Lucy's sleeping form in the bed next to hers and contemplated accidently-on-purpose waking her up. She couldn't quite bring herself to do it though, because Lucy was fast asleep and looked incredibly comfy.

Instead Victoria riffled around for her pyjamas, pulled them on, and then climbed into her own four poster bed. Unsurprisingly, however, she did not fall asleep straight away, as she might have done on a less eventful night.

Parts of the evening just kept playing before her eyes, especially the time that she and Alex had spent alone together in the darkened corridor. He was an amazing kisser, there was no denying that. And she had definitely enjoyed herself, as they'd sat there chatting and laughing, frequently breaking the conversation up with further lip contact.

She definitely should go to Hogsmede with him, reasoned Victoria, as she lay there staring up at the canopy of her bed. And who knew, they were such good friends that maybe they were supposed to be with each other. Maybe in ten or so years' time they'd be recounting the story to their children.

Victoria's eyes eventually fluttered shut in the early hours of the morning, and she tumbled into a deep sleep.

_She was back in the dark First Floor corridor, where the only source of light was the silver moon. Again, she was perched on the window sill, kissing someone. But this time it was as if her life depended on it; you could practically taste the passion that engulfed them. _

_Victoria ran her fingers through thick, black hair that hung lazily across a beautiful face. Meanwhile, a pair of hands explored her own features. One of them brushed down her left side, coming to rest at her hip, while the other was pressed against the small of her back, pulling her tightly against the owner of the hands. _

_Victoria pulled apart for a moment, as the need to breathe became apparent. She stared into the eyes before her. They were so dark. _

_'Sirius' she murmured._

Victoria awoke with a start and sat up so suddenly that she got a head rush.

What the hell was that? Had she just had a dream in which she was kissing Sirius? Sirius Black. Her brother's best friend. Practically a family member.

Yes, she definitely had.

'Hang on guys, Vic is actually awake of her own accord and it's only eight in the morning!' came Lucy's incredulous voice.

Suddenly reminded of the presence of others, Victoria pulled open the hangings around her bed to see Lucy, Pippa and Georgina all sitting up in their own beds, and all looking slightly disbelieving.

'Morning,' muttered Victoria, as images from her dream danced before her eyes.

What on earth was wrong with her? Last night she had had a lovely time with Alex, and now she had ruined it by fantasising about Sirius.

Stop it, another voice in her head told her. It was just a dream, that was all. She just needed to forget about it and move on. After all, dreams didn't mean anything; she'd never been a believer that Divination was in any way accurate.

'Are you alright?' asked Pippa, looking at Victoria with some concern, 'Did something happen last night?'

'You could say that,' agreed Victoria, wondering where to begin. She decided to go for chronology.

'So Lily Evans asked me and Alex to fill in for prefect patrol. We were sitting in the First Floor corridor and-' she broke off, having lost her nerve somewhat.

'What happened?' demanded Lucy, practically bouncing up and down on her bed in anticipation.

'We kissed,' admitted Victoria, picking up a pillow and burying her face in it.

'I knew it!' exclaimed Lucy, punching the air, 'I knew this would happen!'

'Talk us through how it happened!' urged Georgina excitedly.

Victoria grinned despite herself and pressed on. 'Well it sort of just happened. It was really good. Then he told me that he liked me and asked me to Hogsmede. I said yes.'

Lucy and Georgina exchanged a look of triumph. Pippa, however, turned to Victoria with a somewhat wary expression.

'So are you going out then?' she asked, 'And are you sure that you really like him?'

Victoria hesitated as she realised that she didn't actually know if they were officially a couple of not. Sure they were going on a date next week, but that didn't necessarily mean they were together, did it?

'I'm not sure,' admitted Victoria, 'But of course I like him. Why wouldn't I? We're great friends.'

'Okay, okay,' said Pippa, holding her hands up in defence, 'I was just checking.'

'I'm quite excited actually,' admitted Victoria, smiling to herself, 'The last date I had to Hogsmede was with Henry Thornton last summer, and it can't be much worse than that, can it?'

They all snorted with laughter at the memory of the trip, which had cumulated in a military- style operation to sneak Victoria out of Madam Puddifoot's, where Henry had spent the past hour attempting to kiss her; his technique had been akin to that of the washing machine things that Victoria had seen at Georgina's house.

'Ah it is so exciting!' agreed Georgina, clapping her hands together, 'I'll start thinking about what you can wear. And remember, make him pay for everything. Oh and don't kiss him on the first date!'

'It's a bit late for that!' snorted Lucy, as Georgina jumped out of bed and began searching through her jewellery box for appropriate pieces.

Victoria couldn't help but laugh at this. Georgina was thoroughly posh, as a Muggle might say, and when it came to dates, all the etiquette and decorum that she'd had drilled into her as a child came flooding back.

'Now, I think this would go well. Nice and simple.' Georgina held up an understated silver necklace, from which something that looked dangerously like real diamonds flashed enticingly.

'Georgie, as much as I appreciate you offering to lend me your jewellery, I think I'll keep it a bit more simple,' laughed Victoria, 'Oh yeah, and last night Sirius and Ben got into a fight with the Slytherins-'

'What?' exclaimed Georgina, jumping about a foot in the air and dropping the necklace onto the floor, where it was thankfully retrieved by Pippa.

Georgina hurried over to Victoria and threw herself onto the bed.

'What happened? Is Ben okay?'

'He's absolutely fine,' Victoria assured her quickly.

'What happened?' asked Lucy urgently, 'Who started it?'

'Well Alex and I were upstairs when we heard noises coming from the Entrance Hall. We ran down there to find Sirius and Ben duelling with Bernard, Hunt, Snape, Avery and Mulciber. I managed a Shield Charm that deflected the Slytherins' spells, and then James and Lily arrived. I don't think the Slytherins were counting on being outnumbered, so they disappeared pretty quickly. Apparently they'd been waiting in the Entrance Hall for Sirius and Ben to get back from the Quidditch pitch.'

'Bastards,' muttered Georgina.

'Didn't James get involved?' asked Pippa, 'Surely he didn't pass up an opportunity to hex Snape?'

'Nope,' Victoria said, 'He's trying a new mature act around Lily, and I think cursing her ex- best friend might have wrecked that.'

'I still can't work out why they were ever friends,' commented Georgina, delicately screwing up her nose, 'He just so creepy!'

'Is Sirius okay?' asked Lucy.

'Yeah,' said Victoria, 'He and I spoke afterwards. He's fine.'

'Wait,' continued Lucy, narrowing her eyebrows slightly, 'You kissed Alex, and then hung out with Sirius?'

'We didn't really hang out!' protested Victoria, 'I was just checking he was alright, and he thanked me for doing a Shield Charm.'

As she said this, however, Victoria couldn't help but recall her dream. It had seemed so real. And it had seemed so right...

Stop it, she told herself sternly.

'I need to go and see Ben,' declared Georgina suddenly, 'Anyone for breakfast?'

They all nodded their consent and began hunting around for clothes. Fifteen minutes or so later, the four girls descended the staircase, with Victoria's mind still on her strange dream.

'Awh, look at you, all preoccupied with Alex,' gushed Lucy, as the two of them walked side by side down the stairs, 'I'm sorry for saying that I didn't think you liked him that much. I suppose you must do.'

'U-huh,' agreed Victoria.

Part of her wanted to confess the dream to Lucy so she could get her friend's opinion, but the more rational side of her told her it would be a bad idea. After all, it had only been a dream, and she didn't want Lucy to get the impression that she actually fancied Sirius. Then there was the fact that Lucy herself had of course liked Sirius until very recently. It was a potential minefield of awkwardness.

Unsurprisingly, since it was barely half eight on a Saturday morning, the common room was sparsely populated. A few younger students were taking advantage of being able to sit in the best seats by the fire, but apart from that, only Frank Longbottom and Alice Howard were already up. They were sharing a table by the window, a stack of toast between them, and large smiles plastered across both of their faces.

'Disgustingly cute,' muttered Lucy, as Frank and Alice waved over at them.

Victoria didn't say anything. She was very grateful that Frank was the only seventh year boy around. She had no desire to see Sirius until she had made herself forget the more _ahem _passionate details of her dream, and until then she also didn't want to run into her brother; having such a dream about his best friend seemed vaguely like a betrayal.

'Victoria!'

She turned round to see Alex and Ben descending the boys' staircase, both dressed and clearly on their way to breakfast. Victoria felt a strange sensation in her stomach as she clapped eyes on the former, and she noticed that Lucy, Pippa and Georgina all exchanged highly indiscreet grins.

'Good morning,' she said, rather feebly as the boys approached.

'Hey,' muttered Alex, smiling.

Ben, meanwhile, gave her a knowing look that clearly told her that he had been informed of the events that had occurred whilst he was brawling with the Slytherins.

'Are you alright, Ben?' asked Georgina urgently, 'Vic told us what happened.'

'Of course,' replied Ben, clearly stung, 'I'm more than a match for the likes of them.'

'I know, I know,' Georgina reassured him, 'I was just worried.'

Ben smiled gently at her, 'Shall we get breakfast?'

And without another word to the others, the two of them practically skipped out of the portrait hole together.

'Don't mind us!' Pippa called sarcastically after them.

'So, did you have a good evening, Alex?' asked Lucy, and as she did so she actually gave him a knowing wink.

Victoria mentally kicked her best friend, while Pippa chuckled away in the background. Alex, however, merely continued to smile.

'Best night I've had in a while.'

'Only in a while?' asked Victoria playfully, unable to resist the bait.

Alex pretended to ponder the question, 'Well I suppose that evening when Filch chased me and Ben all around the castle because he thought we'd set off some Dungbombs was also pretty fun.'

Lucy and Pippa laughed with him, but Victoria found herself suddenly distracted by a commotion coming from the boys' staircase. Judging by the loud voices and raucous laughter, the Marauders were heading down towards the Common Room, and Victoria had absolutely no desire to see them.

'Shall we head down to breakfast? I'm starving,' she urged, as the gentle tones of Remus confirmed her fear that the seventh year boys were currently walking down their staircase.

'I think that's your brother on his way,' said Pippa, 'Don't you want to say hi?'

'I see enough of that idiot at home. I don't need to spend all my time with him when I'm at school!'

And ignoring their slightly confused expressions, Victoria practically dragged the three of them out of the portrait hole, just in time to hear someone who sounded suspiciously like Sirius call her name.

'You get stranger by the moment, Potter,' commented Pippa, as they made their way into the Great Hall a few minutes later.

Victoria ignored her once again, and led the way across the room towards the Gryffindor table, where small clusters of students were already enjoying a lazy Saturday morning breakfast.

'Romeo and Juliet clearly have something better to do then,' said Lucy, as they took their seats and all automatically scanned the length of the table for Ben and Georgina.

'Romeo and Juliet is a bit inaccurate,' commented Pippa lightly, as she spread a thick layer of jam across her toast, 'That implies they're from rival families, and can only be together in death. That kind of thing.'

'Alright, Miss I-Got-Outstanding-In-Muggle-Studies,' laughed Lucy, pouring herself a glass of orange juice.

'What are your plans for today, Vic?' Alex asked, as Pippa and Lucy continued to playfully bicker between themselves.

'I suppose I ought to get on with some homework,' admitted Victoria grudgingly; the amount of homework the sixth years were currently receiving had hit crisis levels, especially since Victoria was also committed to Quidditch practice and prefect duties.

'Me too,' groaned Alex, 'Fancy heading to the library together? It might make it slightly less dull.'

'Sure,' agreed Victoria, who couldn't help but give him a sideways grin, 'That sounds-'

'Good morning, one and all!'

Victoria looked away from Alex to discover her brother taking a seat next to her, looking even more pleased with himself than usual. She tried to keep her eyes on him rather than Sirius, something which was made rather difficult as the latter had just unhelpfully chosen to sit down opposite her.

'Why are you so happy?' grumbled Victoria, who was not pleased at having her conversation interrupted, or being confronted with the subject of her dream.

'Well you see, my dear sister, I have just confirmed a date for next weekend's Hogsmede visit.'

'Who?' asked Victoria, who couldn't help but feel intrigued by this.

'Felicity Hamby,' grinned James, turning his head towards the Ravenclaw table and winking at a very attractive sixth year girl whom Victoria knew from lessons.

'Why are you going with her?' asked Lucy, 'I thought you were still madly in love with a certain Lily Evans.'

'Exactly. And when Evans sees me with another girl, she'll be overcome with jealously and will subsequently fall at my feet. It's a fool proof plan.'

'Yes, but is it a James proof plan?' asked Victoria, rolling her eyes.

Sirius laughed at this, and the two of them exchanged eye contact for the first time that morning; Victoria was the one to look away first.

'Are the rest of you going into Hogsmede?' asked Pippa, gesturing towards the other three boys.

'I can't,' muttered Peter dejectedly, 'Flitwick has already given me a Detention for next Saturday.'

'What on earth did you do to get a detention from Flitwick?' asked Lucy in an appalled voice, 'I don't think I've ever heard of him giving out detentions!'

'I may have charmed all the pictures on the wall to dance. And I may have gotten a bit carried away and let them all fall to the ground and smash,' admitted Peter.

'Under heavy persuasion,' said Remus, nodding his head towards James and Sirius.

'Yeah, sorry about that, Wormtail. I'll bring you back most of Honeydukes' stock to make up for it,' agreed Sirius. He turned to Remus, 'Oh yeah, sorry Moony but I might have to ditch you on Saturday.'

'May I ask why?'

'I can't have him bringing a date,' Sirius gestured towards James, who still had a smug grin plastered across his face, 'And turn up without one myself. I have a reputation to uphold.'

As he said this, Victoria could have sworn that Sirius glanced at her for a split second. But the next moment, his eyes had returned to the Marauders and she was pretty sure that she had imagined it.

'Great!' complained Remus, before turning to Victoria, Pippa, Lucy and Alex, 'Are you planning on going?'

'You can come with me and Pippa, Remus,' said Lucy instantly, 'I think Vic and Alex might have other plans though.'

'May I inquire as to what these other plans are?' James asked, turning to face his sister with raised eyebrows.

'No, you may not,' Victoria replied bluntly, 'Anyway, I really need to get on with some homework. I'll see you all later.'

'Me too, I'll come with you,' said Alex, and he too got up from the table.

'What was that about?' he asked quietly, as they navigated their way between the house tables towards the Entrance Hall. 'Don't you want anyone to know we're going to Hogsmede together? That is if you still want to go. Sorry, I shouldn't have presumed. I only asked you last night and-'

'Alex, shush,' said Victoria as they reached the Entrance Hall. She placed a finger on his lips. 'Of course I want to go to Hogsmede with you. I just don't want my brother knowing because we'll never hear the end of it if he does. Trust me, if I'd told him then, the whole school would have found out by dinnertime.'

At the back of her mind, Victoria had to question her reasoning behind this. If she was truly comfortable with dating Alex then she wouldn't care if the entire wizarding population of Britain knew that they were together. She honestly didn't think that she would mind if people in school were gossiping about it. She just didn't want one particular person to know. And that person wasn't her brother.

To avoid dwelling on such thoughts, Victoria did the only thing she could think of. She leaned up towards Alex and kissed him.

* * *

However, even without James' help, throughout the following week, the whole school did indeed find out that something was going on between Victoria Potter and Alex Vance. For some unknown reason, the subject seemed to be one of great interest to the majority of students, and Victoria found herself constantly faced with whispers and excited questions about whether or not they were officially a couple.

Not that Victoria or Alex did much to dispel any of these rumours. Just like during the first week of term, Victoria found herself eating all her meals with Alex, studying with him in the library, and chatting with him in the common room until late at night. There was also a considerable amount of kissing going on, although Victoria made an effort to ensure that they didn't look too friendly in public. As far as she knew, the rest of the school weren't entirely sure what was going on between them, and she didn't want to do anything to fuel any more rumours.

The week was also an eventful one for Victoria in several other ways. The amount of homework that the sixth years were receiving had become ridiculous, and so she found herself having to spend more and more time studying. No one seemed to be making much progress with any of the work, except of course for Georgina, who breezed through it all as effortlessly as usual.

Meanwhile, the Slytherins seemed to have developed an even fouler attitude to the rest of the school, and especially the Gryffindors, than ever. Snape, Mulciber, Avery, Hunt and Bernard had been awarded two weeks' worth of detentions by McGonagall for starting the duel with Sirius and Ben, and the entire house appeared to be desperate for some form of revenge. Minor duels became common place in the corridors, so much so that James gave instructions that his team were to be accompanied everywhere. The first Quidditch match would see Gryffindor play Hufflepuff and was due to be held the Saturday after the Hogsmede visit; no one was in any doubt that Slytherin would be willing to do all they could to wreck Gryffindor's chances for the Cup.

It also quickly became clear to Victoria that James' refusal to join in the duel against the Slytherins had simply been an attempt to impress Lily Evans, rather than due to any personal growth. Indeed her brother and Snape seemed to be waging some kind of intense, but discreet battle against one another.

However, news of this didn't reach Lily's attention, or maybe it did but she no longer cared. To Victoria's immense surprise, Lily seemed to be a constant presence during the week before the Hogsmede visit, and James never failed to be on the conversation agenda. The news that James Potter was taking Felicity Hamby to Hogsmede had spread through the school like wildfire, and unbelievably it seemed to have had the desired effect. Victoria had lost count of the amount of times that Lily had asked if James and Felicity were together, even though Victoria's answers were always vague since she could hardly confess the plan.

All in all, by the time Friday evening drew in, Victoria was more than ready for a nice, relaxing weekend, even if the prospect of her date with Alex was making her incredibly nervous. Before this, however, there was Friday night Quidditch practice, which was why Victoria, Pippa and Ben could be found wandering down to the pitch at six o clock that evening.

'So are you and Georgina going to Hogsmede together tomorrow?' Pippa asked of Ben, in her usual blunt manner.

'Yeah, I suppose we are,' smiled Ben.

Victoria and Pippa exchanged triumphant looks; they had been waiting for confirmation of this all week, and Georgina had been deliberately evasive about the matter.

'What are your plans, Pippa?' he asked, 'Since Vic is going with Alex.'

'Ooh yeah, there are two dates tomorrow, aren't there?' grinned Pippa, nudging Victoria. 'Unfortunately I am actually dateless. Lucy and I are heading in with Remus.'

'Not Sirius?' asked Victoria.

'Nope. Remus said he had a date too.'

Victoria forced herself to ignore the horrible drop of her stomach that she experienced upon hearing Pippa's words. There was no reason why she should feel anything about Sirius taking a girl to Hogsmede. Absolutely no reason at all.

'James is still taking Felicity Hamby,' commented Victoria, in a desperate attempt to steer the conversation out of these dangerous waters.

Ben laughed at this. 'What is your brother like?'

'It's so obvious that this is just a plan to make Lily Evans jealous!' exclaimed Pippa, 'I don't know how neither she nor Felicity seem to have realised this!'

'Fair play to him though, I think it might work,' reasoned Ben.

'Me too,' agreed Victoria, 'Lily has been asking me about him all week.'

'Trust me,' laughed Ben, 'I give it two years at the most, and we'll all be dancing at their wedding.'

'That is the plan, Benjamin!'

James had appeared behind them. He slapped Ben on the back. 'I like your faith in me, Moore. That is what I want in my team.'

'You're completely ridiculous,' said Victoria, rolling her eyes at her brother.

'There you go Prongs, even your sister thinks so.'

Victoria hadn't noticed Sirius, but there he was, carrying his broomstick and smiling as though he hadn't a care in the world.

'How's it going, Vic?' he asked, falling into step beside her. Meanwhile, James continued the subject of Lily Evans with Ben and Pippa.

'Oh everything's fine,' said Victoria, 'How are you? I feel like I haven't seen you for ages.'

'I think that might have something to do with developments in your life,' replied Sirius, winking at her.

'What?' queried Victoria, 'Oh, you mean Alex.'

'Wow,' whistled Sirius, 'That's not an encouraging sign if you take a while to remember him.'

'Oh shut up,' muttered Victoria, who was feeling incredibly ashamed that she had just in fact momentarily forgotten the fact that _something _was currently going on between her and Alex.

'Anyway, I hear you've got a date for tomorrow too,' she probed, unable to resist her curiosity.

Sirius glanced at her for a moment, as if reading her expression.

'Yes, I do,' he said eventually, 'Rebecca Findley.'

Victoria knew that Rebecca Findley was a sixth year Ravenclaw and a good friend of Felicity Hamby, James' date. Apart from that she knew little about them. She briefly wondered if they came as some sort of package deal; it was strange that both James and Sirius were taking a pair of best friends to the village.

'Have fun with that,' commented Victoria in what she hoped was an entirely uninterested voice, 'Rebecca has always seemed nice when I've spoken to her.'

'Yeah, she seems it,' agreed Sirius. 'Pretty too,' he added in a casual voice.

Victoria conjured an image of Rebecca into her mind. She supposed she looked quite a lot like Lucy, all blonde curls and large blue eyes. Damn Rebecca and Sirius would make a good looking couple thought Victoria, sneaking a glance at the latter's handsome profile.

'So are you and Alex definitely going together?' asked Sirius.

'Yep,' said Victoria.

She wished they could just hurry up and reach the pitch, where she could thoroughly distract herself with a good, long practice session. The conversation was making her incredibly uncomfortable, particularly because she knew very well that she shouldn't care in the slightest that Sirius had a date for tomorrow. She certainly hadn't been concerned by that kind of thing before, and he had had plenty of dates over the years.

'Are you two official then?' asked Sirius curiously.

Victoria hesitated, and this seemed to give her away.

'So I'll take that as a no. I'm not sure how much you really like him,' said Sirius gently, 'Sorry to be rude, that's just what I think.'

Victoria opened her mouth to protest, but then closed it without saying anything. She'd forgotten that Sirius knew her inside out, probably as much as James did, and a lot more than any of her other friends did. There seemed little point in not telling him the exact truth.

'I really don't know how I feel about him,' she admitted, casting a glance ahead of them to check that Pippa and Ben weren't in earshot.

'Well that's okay,' said Sirius, 'Just see how it goes. If it doesn't work out then it doesn't matter.'

'But it does matter!' insisted Victoria; all of her feelings about the situation seemed to suddenly be pouring out uncontrollably, 'We're such good friends and I'm scared that I'm leading him on. I really enjoy spending time with him, and he is such a great person, but-'

She broke off, unsure if she should say any more.

'But you need more,' Sirius finished the sentence for her.

He suddenly stopped walking and gently reached for her arm to stop her as well.

'Listen, Vic,' he said, looking down into her eyes in a way that instantly recalled Victoria's dream in which they had been kissing, 'If you don't think that you and Alex are right for each other then you don't have to keep seeing each other, or whatever it is that you're doing at the moment.'

'I suppose you're right,' she agreed.

'I know I am,' confirmed Sirius, taking a step towards her so that they were now incredibly close, intimately so. 'I really like Alex, but I don't think he's right for you.'

'Why not?' asked Victoria, with a slightly defensive tone in her voice.

'Because, Victoria Potter,' Sirius paused and looked directly into her eyes, 'You need passion in your life, and Alex can't give you that.'

Victoria couldn't even breathe at that moment. She just stood there, staring into Sirius' face wondering if he was hinting at what she thought he was hinting at.

'Now, let's go and play some Quidditch!' he exclaimed suddenly, breaking the trance like state that Victoria had slipped into. 'Hufflepuff won't know what has hit them!'

And with that, he turned away from her and hurried down the hill towards James.

Victoria, meanwhile, stood rooted to the spot, unable to move for a moment. She stared at Sirius as he slapped James on the back and laughed easily about something her brother had said.

That was the first time that she let herself admit what she had known for a while now.

She, Victoria Potter, wanted Sirius Black.

* * *

**Hope you liked the chapter! Please leave me a review and let me know what you thought. I'd be grateful for even the smallest comment, good or bad. **

**The next chapter focuses on the Hogsmede visit, which I think its fair to say won't run smoothly... **


	6. Chapter 6

When Victoria awoke the following morning, on the day of the first Hogsmede visit of term, she wished very much to simply pull the covers over her head and go back to sleep.

Getting up and encountering people would mean facing up to the truth of what she had admitted to herself last night, namely that she fancied Sirius Black, despite having planned a date today with one of the loveliest boys on the planet. God, she was a bad person.

Quidditch practice the previous evening had been like a kind of slow and horrible torture. It seemed that because she'd finally realised her feelings for Sirius, she just couldn't stop thinking about him in that way. Everything he'd said last night had been hilarious, and every look had made her breath catch in her throat.

She was being ridiculous, Victoria told herself, as she lay in bed. Sirius was her brother's best friend, and so he was off limits. Plus then there was the fact that Lucy had previously fancied him. The whole situation was just too complicated to even approach. She was going to forget about Sirius, go to Hogsmede with Alex, and then perhaps she would have to gently let Alex know that they were better suited as friends. She would see how the day went before making any decision on that front, although deep down she already knew what her decision would be.

'Vic! Are you awake?'

Victoria pulled open her bed hangings only to be confronted by Georgina, who was curling her hair with her wand and looking thoroughly excited.

'Morning,' muttered Victoria.

'Cheer up,' said Georgina briskly, 'Today is date day.'

'Is that the reason for all of this?' asked Victoria, gesturing to Georgina. The latter was already dressed in a floral tea-dress that would have looked ridiculous on anyone else but which suited her perfectly. She had accessorised with a simple silver chain, and had painted her fingernails a delicate shade of pink. The overall effect was somewhat enchanting.

'She's been getting ready for a good two hours,' laughed Lucy, rolling her eyes.

Both she and Pippa were still in their pyjamas, lounging on the latter's bed, and watching Georgina with expressions of mingled amusement and fascination.

Georgina ignored them both and hurried over to her wardrobe, from which she produced two day dresses, one pink and one light blue.

'Which do you think would be better, Vic?' she asked.

'Oh no!' said Victoria, sensing where this was going, 'As much as I appreciate it, I don't need you to dress me up!'

And with that, she hurried off into the bathroom before Georgina could protest. Unfortunately, Georgina was still on the topic of dates when Victoria emerged from her shower.

'My cousin met her husband whilst they were both at Oxford,' she was saying dreamily, 'Their first date was to Christ Church Commemoration Ball. White tie, dancing, champagne. Absolute perfection.'

'You know, I used to see you as a modern, independent woman,' commented Victoria, as she dried her hair with her wand.

'I am!' protested Georgina, 'But there's nothing wrong with a little old fashioned romance.'

'Is this what the Muggle world is like?' asked Lucy incredulously. Like Victoria, she was pure blood, and had had little contact with the non-magic realm.

'Only about one percent of it,' scoffed Pippa, whose parents were both Muggleborn, 'My dad's family are all mechanics in Sheffield, and my mum's are farmers. No one really lives like that anymore.'

Georgina turned a shade of pink to match her nail varnish, and resumed curling her hair in silence.

'Georgie, just how posh are you, actually?' asked Pippa slowly.

'Oh I don't know,' said Georgina casually, 'Not that posh.'

'Remind me what school your brother goes to again?' pressed Pippa.

'Oh shut up!' laughed Georgina.

'Anyway, can we go back to a conversation that Vic and I can understand as well?' interrupted Lucy.

'Oh no, don't mind me,' insisted Victoria, 'I'll just be over here putting on my jeans and making sure I look as ordinary as possible for today.'

'Victoria Catherine Potter!' exclaimed Georgina, with a scandalised expression on her face, 'You cannot, under any circumstances, wear jeans on a date.'

'Okay, so you've lost it,' declared Victoria, while Lucy and Pippa chuckled along in the background.

'That kind of attitude is why you two don't have dates,' Georgina said to the latter two.

'Excuse me! We're going with a guy. We just happen to be sharing him between us,' pointed out Pippa, in a tone of mock outrage.

'Yes, well, back to Vic's date,' said Georgina rolling her eyes. She turned back to Victoria, 'You're not seriously wearing that, are you?'

'Yep,' replied Victoria, as she slipped her feet into a pair of pumps.

Unlike Georgina, she had kept her outfit casual. Blue skinny jeans and a simple cream blouse with detailing around the neckline. Victoria had no desire to dress up excessively. It might give Alex the wrong idea, something which she really didn't want to do. She had no intention of leading him along any more than she already had done.

'I give up with you all!' sighed Georgina, shaking her head at them, and strutting into the bathroom to check her immaculate reflection.

'Remind me why we're friends with you!' Pippa called after her.

* * *

A couple of hours later, and the four girls were standing in the crowded Entrance Hall, waiting for their respective Hogsmede partners. Victoria couldn't understand why they hadn't just waited for the boys in the common room, just like they did every morning before breakfast, but Georgina had insisted that it would be nicer to have a proper meeting point.

Most of the school seemed to be thinking along similar lines. The Entrance Hall was full of people seeking out friends and dates, all anticipating an enjoyable day in the village.

'Morning.'

Remus was strolling up to them, thankfully without Sirius.

'Hi, Remus,' smiled Lucy.

'Peter still has detention then?' asked Victoria.

'Yeah,' said Remus, 'Flitwick was absolutely furious about what happened. He refused to let him off. And James and Sirius have gone to wait outside the Ravenclaw common room for Felicity and Rebecca.'

Damn it, that was romantic, thought Victoria resentfully.

'Oh, here are the boys!' exclaimed Georgina, clapping her hands together excitedly, as Alex and Ben descended the main staircase.

Remus raised his eyebrows at Victoria, who merely said, 'Don't ask!'

'Hello,' smiled Ben to Georgina, 'Wow, you look amazing.'

'Oh just something I pulled together,' she shrugged, causing Lucy, Pippa and Victoria to all snigger with laughter; Georgina threw them a very sharp look.

'Shall we go?' she suggested to him.

'Sure,' he agreed.

And with that, they both waved goodbye to everyone, and wandered out of the castle into the grounds together. Victoria noticed how Ben automatically reached for Georgina's hand, and how they walked so close together, their bodies occasionally touching.

'Hey,' she smiled, turning to Alex, and hoping that her expression didn't look too forced.

'Morning,' he said breezily, 'Shall we head down too?'

'Sure,' agreed Victoria. She turned to Lucy, Pippa and Remus, 'Are you leaving now as well?'

'Erm I suppose so,' agreed Lucy, throwing Victoria a confused look. Victoria couldn't blame her. It probably looked as though she was avoiding spending any time alone with Alex; Victoria's stomach squirmed with guilt at the thought of this.

The five of them left the Hall and stepped out into the late September breeze. There was a definite chill in the air- a sure sign that one of the bitter winters that usually engulfed the school was soon on its way. Victoria for one was glad that she had gone for the sensible but warm option of jeans, and couldn't help but snicker to herself at the thought of Georgina shivering away in her dress.

The walk down into the village was a pleasant one, and Remus didn't once mention Sirius, for which Victoria was immensely thankful. Navigating today's potential minefield of awkwardness with Alex would be difficult enough without any distracting thoughts about a certain Mr Black.

When they reached Hogsmede, Pippa immediately suggested Zonko's, and both Remus and Lucy were more than happy to go along with this. Alex, however, wanted to go to Dervish and Bangs, and Victoria understood that it would be very poor form for her to not go along with this. They were supposed to be on a date after all. And so, she waved a rather reluctant goodbye to the others, and she and Alex wandered further down the street.

'How was Quidditch practice last night?' asked Alex, as they walked past The Three Broomsticks.

'Oh it was alright,' said Victoria. The last thing she wanted to talk about right now was Quidditch, since it immediately brought associations of a certain someone.

'What did you do last night?' she asked.

'Not much. Lucy and I did that Potions essay. That was about it.'

'Oh okay.'

For some reason, the conversation stilted after this. What on earth was wrong with both of them, thought Victoria in horror, as they completed their purchases in Dervish and Bangs, still without speaking. Maybe Alex had suddenly become a master of Legilimency and knew that she was having doubts about whatever it was that they were doing.

'Shall we go for a drink?' she suggested desperately, after they had been in Honeydukes and again barely said a word to one another.

'Good idea,' said Alex in a strained voice; he was clearly finding the ordeal as uncomfortable as she was.

They were just on their way to the pub, when someone suddenly grabbed hold of Victoria's arm. She automatically spun round, only to be confronted by a rather terrified looking James.

'Help me!' he gasped dramatically.

'What the hell is the wrong with you?'

James cast a glance over his shoulder, as though he was expecting a Death Eater to appear from nowhere and start firing the Killing Curse at him.

'Felicity is a monster!' he exclaimed.

'Oh dear God, I hope people forget that we're related!' muttered Victoria, 'You asked her out. It's your problem to deal with.'

'But she keeps trying to snog me! What am I supposed to do?'

'Kiss her back?' suggested Alex.

James spared him one look of contempt. 'Vance, if I wanted stupid answers then I would ask Snivellus for girl advice.'

As he said that, Felicity herself appeared around the corner of the Three Broomsticks. She had evidently been searching for James, and her eyes instantly clapped eyes on him. Even Victoria had to admit that there was a somewhat fiendish glow about her.

'So we better get going,' chuckled Victoria, waving goodbye to her brother before he could protest.

She and Alex ducked into the Three Broomsticks, leaving Felicity to throw her arms around James' neck and attempt to force her lips against his.

'Don't you think we should help him?' asked Alex, casting a wary glance back out onto the street; James had managed to break free from her clutches, and was sprinting across the cobbles as if his life depended on it.

'Nah,' disagreed Victoria, 'He's a big boy, I'm sure he'll be fine.'

Plus, the warmth of the pub was a lovely respite from the bitter autumn chill outside, and she was craving a Butterbeer. Victoria led the way to the bar, where Alex insisted on purchasing their drinks. Victoria knew that Georgina would approve of this, but she herself experienced another crashing wave of guilt.

'Not with your brother and Sirius today?' asked Rosmerta, the friendly and attractive landlady who seemed to nurse something of a soft spot for both James and Sirius.

'Nope. They're both on dates,' said Victoria in what she hoped was a casual sounding voice. Only after having said this did she realise, with a leap of horror, that she too was supposed to be on a date, and had forgotten to mention it.

'Oh okay,' said Rosmerta, clearly somewhat disgruntled, 'Well, I hope they pop in at some point anyway.'

Victoria and Alex turned around to survey the pub, searching for a table. This was no mean feat; it seemed as though every single visitor to Hogsmede that day was crowded into this one building.

Lily Evans was sitting at a table in the corner, accompanied by her best friend, Mary McDonald, as well as Frank Longbottom's close friend, the Ravenclaw Mike Turner. Frank himself was seated at a nearby table, holding hands with Alice Howard. Meanwhile, Maggie and Keith from the Gryffindor team were with a group of friends, all of them engaged in animated conversation, and various classmates of Victoria's were also dotted around the place.

Victoria' eyes fell upon a dark haired figure in the corner. It always shocked her slightly when she was reminded just how similar in looks Regulus Black was to his brother. That, however, was where the continuities ended. Regulus had swallowed all of the pure-blood nonsense that characterised the Black family, something which caused Sirius to regularly express the view that his brother would be joining Voldermort's ranks the moment he set foot outside of Hogwarts. However, Regulus did not really spend much time with the likes of Snape, Mulciber, Avery, Hunt and Bernard. Victoria secretly suspected that Snape would not have permitted this is any case; she doubted that he'd want a daily reminder of the humiliation he'd endured at the hands of the other Black brother. Instead of being like them, causing as much trouble as possible and using Dark Magic, Regulus was much more reserved. There was something cold and rather calculating about him; cheap tricks on Muggleborns just weren't his style. Today he was sharing a table with a couple of sixth year Slytherins, although thankfully not Hunt or Bernard.

'Oh look, there's Pippa, Lucy and Remus,' said Alex suddenly, forcing Victoria to look away from Regulus Black.

Sure enough, their friends were seated in the far corner of the room, all of them looking as though they were having a thoroughly enjoyable day.

'Shall we join them?' suggested Victoria. She was well aware that she and Alex should perhaps spend some more time alone together, but she didn't want another bout of stilted, awkward conversation, and there weren't any other free tables as far as she could tell anyway.

'Sure,' agreed Alex, leading the way over to them.

'Hey,' said Victoria, taking a free seat next to Remus.

'Oh, hello, you two,' said Lucy in a tone of surprise, 'Have a good morning?'

Victoria and Alex both said 'yeah' simultaneously, and neither of them managed to sound at all convincing.

'What have you guys been up to?' asked Victoria.

'Well Pippa insisted on spending all morning in Zonko's,' laughed Remus gently, 'So not much apart from that!'

'Yeah, Remus and I got so bored after the first ten minutes that we ended up having an animated conversation about Gobstones for about half an hour!' exclaimed Lucy. She exchanged a look with Remus, and the two of them burst into laughter at the memory of this supposedly funny event.

'Anyway,' interrupted Pippa, rolling her eyes, 'Has anyone seen Georgina and Ben? Or do you think they've spontaneously combusted due to the disgusting levels of mutual soppiness?'

They all laughed at this, but were soon interrupted by the arrival of a red haired figure, who came to stand by Victoria.

'Hi, Lily.'

'Can I have a quick word please, Victoria?'

Feeling certain that she knew what the topic of conversation would be, Victoria reluctantly followed Lily over to a space near the door that was relatively private. Victoria glanced over at the table which Lily had previously been occupying, only to see Mary McDonald shoot her an apologetic look.

'What on earth is going on with your brother and Felicity Hamby?' demanded Lily, cutting to the chase straight away. 'I've just seen them kissing outside the pub.'

'I think kissing is a strong word,' admitted Victoria, 'I don't think it was necessarily consensual on James' side. Felicity seems a bit overly attached.'

'Oh really?' Lily's emerald eyes lit up with mischief. 'Hmm, that's interesting, isn't it? It would imply that he's not actually keen on her.'

'Of course he's not interested in her!' huffed Victoria rather impatiently. Considering that she was widely regarded as one of the smartest people in school, Lily was being incredibly slow on the uptake.

'Why did he ask her-' Lily broke off and her eyes widen in realisation. 'Ohhhhh!'

'At last!' muttered Victoria.

'Are you saying that James only invited her to Hogsmede in order to make me jealous?' asked Lily, who looked absolutely delighted at the prospect.

'No, no, I did not say that!' said Victoria quickly, 'If James asks, I did not say anything.'

'Fine, okay,' agreed Lily, waving this away.

'So do you like him?' asked Victoria, unable to resist her curiosity for the matter, 'Because at the start of term it seemed like he annoyed the hell out of you.'

'Oh he still does,' confirmed Lily, 'But there's a thin line between love and hate, Victoria. And that line has suddenly gotten a bit blurred.'

'Oh god,' muttered Victoria; judging by their shared love for dramatic proclamations, James and Lily were perfectly suited for one another.

'So, what do you think I should do?' urged Lily.

Victoria was rather alarmed at being asked this question, especially since James had also asked something similar only a couple of weeks ago, but she gave it her best shot anyway.

'Just tell him how you feel,' she suggested.

'But then he'll win!' exclaimed Lily loudly.

'Erm I thought it was about fancying someone, not about winning.'

Lily shook her head in disagreement. 'No, I can't let Potter win on this. He has to be the one to ask me out, not the other way round. I'm going to play him at his own game. Anyway, thanks for the help, Vic.'

And with that, she turned on her heel and flounced back towards a rather exasperated looking Mary McDonald.

'What was that about?' asked Lucy, as soon as Victoria rejoined her friends.

'Oh, nothing important. She was just checking that my Potions work was going okay this term.'

This was, of course, a complete lie, but Victoria didn't think it would be a good idea to relay her conversation with Lily whilst Remus was at the table.

The five of them quickly fell into conversation again, and Victoria couldn't help but notice the difference between this and the first half of the day. Alex seemed to have picked up on this too. He was much more talkative and animated than he had been when it had been just him and Victoria. This observation cheered her up slightly. Maybe Alex had also come to realise that they were better off as friends, something which would make it much easier when she was forced to have that inevitable conversation with him.

The group were just getting started on the topic of their most recent- and most ridiculous- Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, when Victoria happened to look up and notice the two people that had just entered the pub.

Sirius was leaning against the bar, casually chatting away to Rebecca Findley. They were clearly enjoying each others' company, because they were laughing gently about whatever it was that they were talking about. Victoria watched as Sirius ordered two drinks and paid for them.

Then he suddenly turned around to face the room, and caught Victoria's eye. He waved happily, but in the process of attempting a forced smile in return, Victoria somehow managed to spill Butterbeer all down her front. Blushing furiously, Victoria turned away hurriedly and noticed that Regulus Black had been watching the scene from his seat in the opposite corner. A small smirk danced around his face.

'Afternoon all,' said Sirius amiably, as he and Rebecca approached Victoria and the others. Meanwhile, Victoria used her wand to dry her top as subtly as possible, although she had a horrible feeling that Pippa might have witnessed everything that had just happened.

There was much shuffling along the benches in order to make room for the two new arrivals and, to Victoria's horror, she somehow found herself wedged next to Rebecca.

'Hello, Victoria,' smiled Rebecca cheerily, 'Having a good trip so far?'

Victoria merely nodded since she didn't quite trust herself to speak. This was literally her worst nightmare come true; Alex, Sirius and Sirius' date all at the same table. She just needed Voldermort to walk in and start cursing people at random, and then it truly would be a scene straight out of a horror story.

'We were just talking about Professor Bruce,' prompted Lucy.

'Oh gosh, he's a character, isn't he?' exclaimed Rebecca.

She launched into an anecdote about the teacher that even Victoria had to (very reluctantly) admit was hilarious. The rest of the table certainly thought so, and Pippa even managed to knock over Lucy's Butterbeer she was laughing that much.

'How's your day, Vic?' asked Sirius quietly, his eyes flickering over to Alex who was thankfully listening to Rebecca.

'It's been good,' lied Victoria smoothly, although she doubted very much that he believed her. Their brutally honest conversation about Alex from the previous evening flew back into her mind.

She just couldn't forget how close they'd been standing, whilst Sirius spoke about passion. The mere memory of it made her shiver.

The group stayed in the pub for another hour or so, during which Rebecca kept everyone thoroughly entertained. Victoria couldn't help but watch her, and decided that there was definitely something enticing about the girl. She was beautiful with an amazing personality, of course Sirius would want to date her. Maybe Victoria should have let Georgina play dress-up with her after all.

After a while, Remus suggested that they head back up to the castle. Victoria jumped up immediately, desperate for the chance to get away from the present company. Unfortunately, they all walked to school together, with Sirius and Rebecca standing much too close to one another for Victoria's comfort.

'Are you alright, Vic?' asked Pippa quietly, 'You seem a bit strange today.'

'I'm fine,' insisted Victoria.

'Are you sure? Did the date with Alex not go well?'

Victoria hesitated, and looked at Alex, who was walking next to Remus and chatting about Transfiguration. No one else was in earshot.

'It was awful,' she whispered, 'We had literally nothing to say to one another because there was too much pressure. You were definitely right- I don't think I like him as anything more than a friend.'

Pippa gave her a sympathetic look and gently squeezed her arm.

'Vic, that's absolutely fine,' she said, 'You just need to tell him how you feel. You've only been on one date, I'm sure he'll understand. There's no point dragging this out if it's not going to go anywhere, and if it might wreck your friendship.'

'You're right,' sighed Victoria.

'As per usual.'

Pippa hesitated and glanced over towards the others.

'There isn't anyone else, is there?' she said this in the quietest whisper, but her eyes locked onto Victoria's as if she already knew the answer.

'Of course not!' insisted Victoria, 'There's no one else at all.'

* * *

'...And then we kissed on top of the hill by the Shrieking Shack. It was absolutely magical.'

Victoria, Lucy and Pippa were all laying on their respective beds, listening to Georgina's ramblings about her day with Ben.

'I thought you said you shouldn't kiss a boy on the first date?' Pippa reminded her.

'Oh that doesn't matter! Now, can I borrow some parchment, please?'

'Who on earth are you writing to at this time?' Pippa asked her, as she handed her paper and a quill.

'My cousin. I need to fill her in on all the details of today.'

'Is this the cousin who met her husband at that Oxford ball thingy?' asked Lucy.

'No,' said Georgina, rolling her eyes as though Lucy had just asked her what one plus one equalled, 'This is my cousin who lives in Windsor. Interestingly, she also went to Oxford and-'

'Oh dear God,' muttered Pippa, as Georgina launched into another story about her relatives' love lives. Pippa picked up a pillow and tossed it across the room at Georgina.

Victoria, meanwhile, said nothing. Listening to Georgina's ramblings had served the purpose of merely reminding her that she didn't feel anything like that when she was around Alex. If someone told her that a kiss next to a haunted building could be magical and romantic, Victoria would have scoffed. Except, however, if the person she was kissing was Sirius.

A image floated before her eyes of the two of them. She was pressed back against the wooden fence that kept people away from the Shack, while Sirius had his armed around her waist, pulling their bodies impossibly close to one another's. His lips were against her, sometimes with an urgency that almost made her legs give way, and sometimes with a gentleness that sent shudders down her spine. Meanwhile she reached up her hand, and ran it through the beautiful dark hair that hang effortlessly around that face. Sirius pulled her even closer to him and-

Stop it! Victoria told herself furiously.

She picked up one of her pillows and put it over her head, engulfing herself in darkness.

She was not to have these fantasise about Sirius.

Absolutely no good could come of it...

* * *

**So there you go, Victoria is going to end things with Alex, and she's still into Sirius. Hmm I wonder if anything will come of that... ;)**

**The next chapter will involve Victoria being honest with Alex, and then a little heart to heart time with Sirius. **

**I had some lovely reviews for the previous chapter, so please let them continue! I would appreciate any little comment, good or bad. Also, I seem to have had something of a surge of readers for the last chapter, so a massive thanks for taking the time to read my story! **


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven **

Victoria was awake, showered and dressed so early the following morning that she decided she must be having some kind of out of body experience.

Georgina had kept them all awake late into the night, recounting her date with Ben, and providing endless anecdotes about the love lives of her muggle friends and family- all of which seemed to involve public schools, country retreats, and minor members of the royal family.

Even after Georgina had finally shut up- and Pippa had finished a lecture about social inequality within the muggle world- Victoria's sleep had been fitful. Her dreams had been plagued by recurring images of both Alex and Sirius; one of them had even featured the two boys chasing each other down the Charms corridor armed with beater bats.

Victoria was the first one to wake in her dorm: Georgina was breathing softly, a serene smile across her face; Pippa was sprawled horizontal across her bed, face pressed into a pillow; Lucy was muttering quietly and incoherently, something about Potions.

Victoria grabbed her Transfiguration textbook, and slipped out of the door as quietly as possible, so not to disturb her sleeping friends. Once downstairs, she threw herself into a comfy armchair in the empty common room, and began to flick through her book.

McGonagall had set them some theory reading, and Victoria's plan was to get on with it until she could accost Alex when he came down for breakfast. She was so desperate to get the conversation over with that she had briefly considered barging into the sixth year boys' dormitory. However, upon reflection she had decided that this would probably give off the wrong impression.

Victoria had been in the common room for about twenty minutes when the first person appeared. It was Remus, trudging down the boys' staircase, and looking rather ill. He had deep bags set around his eyes, and his skin appeared grey-ish in the dim light.

'Are you okay?'

Remus jumped slightly, evidently not having noticed her.

'Oh, yes. Just a little under the weather. I'm going to the hospital wing.'

'Have you ever thought about going to St Mungo's just to see that everything is okay?' suggested Victoria, frowning in concern, 'You must have a dedicated bed in the hospital wing by now!'

Remus produced a smile that looked rather forced.

'It's nothing to worry about,' he assured her, 'my family is just a rather sickly one, I'm afraid.'

'Well, if you're sure,' said Victoria, entirely unconvinced. Maybe she should have a word with James just to check that everything really was okay.

'I am,' smiled Remus, 'But I genuinely appreciate your concern.'

With that, he headed out of the portrait hole.

Victoria didn't have long to ponder the mystery of Remus' constant illnesses, however, because people soon began to trickle down into the common room.

One of the first was Alice Howard, who came to sit with Victoria while she waited for Frank. The two of them really were stupidly cute. They had gotten together at the beginning of their fifth year, and had been pretty much inseparable ever since. With anyone else it might have been a case of too much too young, but Alice and Frank were so compatible that no one thought that. It wasn't as if they neglected their friendships either. Alice was solid friends with Lily Evans and Mary McDonald, and was well liked by the vast majority of the Hogwarts students. While Frank wasn't part of the Marauders, unlike his fellow seventh year housemates, he was on friendly terms with them, and also had closer friends in both Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw.

'Sorry about Lily yesterday,' grinned Alice, taking a seat next to Victoria.

Victoria laughed at the memory of her conversation with Lily in The Three Broomsticks.

'No worries! Although I'm completely despairing at the pair of them. Why on earth aren't they already together?'

'God knows,' agreed Alice, shaking her head, 'Lily has been talking about James non- stop since sixth year. She really likes his hair.'

'I know,' spluttered Victoria, 'I overhead you guys and Mary discussing it in the bathroom last year.'

Alice chuckled at this, and they fell into a companionable silence for a few moments.

'How is the NEWT work going?' asked Victoria after a minute or so.

'Don't even get me started,' sighed Alice, rolling her eyes, 'I'd say that I can't wait for them to be over, but then I have the Auror tests waiting for me after.'

'You want to join the Auror Office?' This was completely new information to Victoria.

'Definitely,' said Alice, in a voice so full of determination that Victoria was slightly taken aback.

'Frank does too,' she continued, 'We both feel that it's our duty to fight. To fight Him.'

'I couldn't agree more,' admitted Victoria, 'Both of my parents are Aurors, and I fully intend on joining them. Only, I've not told anyone that before, only Lucy.'

Alice smiled gently, and then studied Victoria for a few moments. When she spoke again, it was in a much quieter voice, even though there were only half a dozen people around.

'Have you heard of the Order of the Phoenix?'

'Only vaguely,' confessed Victoria, 'Alex's sister, Emmeline, is a member.'

Alice nodded, 'Yes, I'd heard that she was. Well, Frank and I are really interested in joining that too. That's if Dumbledore will have us, of course.'

'I can't think of two people he'd want more,' said Victoria truthfully.

However, as she said this, the usual wave of fear washed over her. It was coming- the time when she, her brother, and all of their friends, would have to face what was out there. There would be no teachers to run to, no red and gold colours to hide behind- it would be war. And Victoria wouldn't be able to keep them all safe. She thought about Ben and Georgina, their volatile tempers and their desperation to see that justice was served. She shivered involuntarily at the prospect.

'Morning!' came Frank Longbottom's cheerful voice, jolting Victoria from her macabre thoughts.

'Hi Frank,' said Victoria, as he and Alice gently kissed each other good morning.

'How's the team going?' asked Frank, 'I hope we trounce Hufflepuff on Saturday. I don't think I could cope with sharing a dorm with James if we lose.'

'I think we're doing alright,' smiled Victoria, 'Our chances look pretty good-'

She broke off as she noticed the lone figure that had just appeared at the foot of the boys' staircase.

'Would you excuse me?' she asked of Alice and Frank.

'No problem,' said Alice, 'I think it's time for breakfast anyway.'

'Thanks,' smiled Victoria.

She headed across the common room towards the new arrival.

'Hey,' said Alex, his smile not quite reaching those deep blue eyes that normally lit up whenever he was with someone.

'Can we talk?' asked Victoria quietly, gesturing towards a private corner of the common room.

He followed her in silence, and the two took armchairs facing each other.

Wow, this was awful, gulped Victoria.

'So I had a really good time yesterday. But-' she began.

Alex held up a hand to stop her.

'Let's be honest, Vic. Yesterday was awkward as hell.'

To her complete surprise- and utmost relief- she watched as a genuine smile broke across his features.

'Thank God!' sighed Victoria, relaxing her own face in response, 'What the hell happened yesterday? Normally we have a great time together.'

Alex shrugged, 'Ben thinks there was just too much pressure on us.'

'You've talked to Ben about it?'

'Yes. Do you mind?'

'O course not. I spoke to Pippa and she said something similar.'

'Maybe we should learn to listen to our friends more,' suggested Alex, smiling sadly.

'Listen, Alex. I really don't want you to think that I've led you on. I think I confused great friendship with something more.'

'It's an easy mistake to make, Vic,' said Alex, the honesty evident in his voice, 'It just wasn't our time.'

This had gone one hundred times better than Victoria could ever have expected. They seemed to be on the exact same page.

'Our friendship isn't affected, right?' asked Victoria nervously.

'Of course not,' he reassured her instantly, 'We're much too good friends to let that happen.'

Victoria smiled, 'Has anyone ever told you how brilliant you are, Alex Vance?'

'It's been said.'

They sat in silence for a minute or two, until Alex spoke once more.

'There's just one thing, Vic. Can I ask you a question?'

'Sure.'

'Is there anyone else?'

Victoria's breath caught in her throat. Did Alex know about how Sirius Black had constantly been on her mind since the start of term? Had he suddenly become an accomplished mind reader?

'No,' she said, hoping her voice sounded even, though she very much doubted that it did, 'No, there's no one else.'

It wasn't a lie. Not really. Sirius was merely an object of her fantasies after all. And that was not the reason why she had wanted to end things with Alex anyway.

It wasn't a lie.

Somehow- and no one was entirely sure how- the entire school seemed to find out that Victoria Potter and Alex Vance had ended things mere moments after their conversation had taken place. The interest in her romantic life completely baffled Victoria, who had to endure endless questions and whispers in the week that followed.

Luckily, Alex didn't seem at all fazed by the gossip, or if he was bothered then he was very skilled at hiding it. Victoria and the girls continued to spend a significant amount of time with him and Ben and- if awkwardness wasn't entirely avoided- it was kept to a bare minimum. The failed relationship was currently something of a taboo conversation topic, but Victoria had a suspicion that, in a couple of years' time, they would all be laughing about it.

If they all survived a couple of years, that was.

The build up to the Gryffindor- Hufflepuff match was met with a fever never before seen in living memory. Obviously the houses of both teams were desperate for a victory. If possible, this was especially true for Gryffindor. Every day, students would arrive at breakfast, only to be confronted by fresh stories on the horrors of the outside world. The fact that the Slytherins appeared to openly support such atrocities, only ensured that Gryffindor were determined to see their own house's name on the Cup this year. Meanwhile, Ravenclaw was hoping the game would be won by a very narrow margin, thus bolstering Ravenclaw's own chances for the Cup. Inevitably, most of the trouble came from the Slytherins, who were chomping at the bit to see Gryffindor thoroughly defeated. This sentiment materialized in a sharp increase in inter-house tension. Hunt and Bernard trailed around the corridors, hoping to pick off lone Gryffindors. Regulus Black- Slytherin's admittedly rather talented Seeker- also vented his anticipation by stalking the corridors. However, he exerted his power by looking as haughty and intimidating as possible, rather than through dueling. Meanwhile, James and Snape conducted short but furious fights whenever they cast eyes on each other in the corridors. To observers, Snape seemed even more resentful towards James than usual, and Victoria was in no doubt as to why this was.

Everyone in school had quietly observed that Lily Evans' famous rages against James Potter had all but stopped, and there was much speculation as to why this was. Meanwhile, Lily appeared to have been swotting up on Quidditch facts and trivia, and held highly flirtatious conversations on the topic with every boy who stumbled into her vicinity. Every boy except for James, that was. This was perhaps why James had a look of a frustrated, caged animal about him pretty much all the time in the build up to the match.

Saturday couldn't come any quicker for the students, but before that, the Gryffindor team had one final practice on the Friday evening.

After a fun, leisurely dinner together, Alex, Lucy and Georgina headed for the warmth of the Gryffindor common room, while Victoria, Pippa and Ben all shouldered their broomsticks, and ventured out into the chilly night air.

'Gosh, I'd forgotten how bloody cold it gets up here,' complained Pippa, as they walked towards the pitch as quickly as possible.

'It's going to be a hell of a lot colder when we're up there,' pointed out Ben, gesturing up to the sky.

'Ugh. Don't remind me. I'm tempted to resign my spot.'

'Positivity, Philippa!' came James' chastising voice.

'What on earth have you been doing?' asked Victoria, taking in her brother's rather disheveled appearance.

'I've just been chased by Felicity Hamby,' he exclaimed, a slightly manic look in his eyes.

'Chased?' repeated Victoria skeptically.

'It's true!' protested James, 'I practically had to beat her off with my broomstick, she's that desperate for a bit of The Potter.'

'Ugh,' was Victoria's response to this.

'Why did I have to pick the mental one?' mused James, as the four of them continued walking, 'Rebecca Findley would have been a much better choice. Why Sirius ended it with her is beyond me.'

'They're not together?' asked Victoria, a little too eagerly; out of the corner of her eye, she saw Pippa cast her an all too knowing look.

'Nope,' said James, who thankfully didn't seem to have noticed his sister's reaction to the news.

Well that was interesting, thought Victoria, as they reached the changing rooms.

'You lot took your time,' chastised the man himself, sticking his head around the changing room doors.

'I'm the captain,' said James simply, 'Practice starts when I'm here, Padfoot.'

Sirius rolled his eyes and chuckled, 'You mean you had to run away from Felicity again, Prongs?'

'Where do Padfoot and Prongs come from?' asked Victoria for what was probably the millionth time. She hoped that if she constantly asked her brother and Sirius, one of them would eventually crack and confess the origin of the infuriatingly mysterious nicknames.

'Sorry, Vic,' grinned Sirius, 'That's for us to know and you not to find out.'

Victoria ignored him and moved towards the benches to get changed.

'You can have a nickname too, if it makes you feel better,' offered Sirius.

'Great,' muttered Victoria sarcastically, as she pulled her Quidditch robes over her head, 'And what, may I ask, would mine be?'

'Oh I'm sure I'll be able to think of something,' said Sirius quietly, throwing her a sideways grin that made her knees go weak.

'I don't think you know me well enough to give me one,' retorted Victoria, as Sirius made his way over to her.

'Oh is that so?' asked Sirius, raising a single eyebrow in what was clearly a challenging manner.

'Yep,' confirmed Victoria.

Wow, they were standing close together.

'Maybe you should let me get to know you a little better then,' whispered Sirius, as an absolutely devastating smile danced around his lips.

God, Victoria wanted that to happen. She indulged herself by allowing a small fantasy to play out in her mind. The rest of the team had vanished, leaving only her and Sirius in the changing rooms. She took a step towards him, and whispered back into his ear that she wanted him to get to know her better. To get to know absolutely every aspect of her. Sirius pulled her to him, their lips crashed against each others'…

'Alright team! In the air!' commanded James, effectively ending Victoria's short fantasy.

She hated her brother at times.

An hour and a half later, the team touched back down on the ground, exhausted, but very pleased with themselves. Every single one of them had played to their utmost ability. James, Pippa and Maggie had been flawless in their goals, passes and formation; Keith had once again pulled off a series of saves that bordered on legendary; Sirius and Ben had achieved both aim and strength in their hits all evening; and Victoria had managed to catch the Snitch so often that James had gruffly informed her that she had made him a very proud older brother.

'I wouldn't be surprised if the Montrose Magpies immediately sign us all up after tomorrow's game,' said James, as the team practically skipped back to the changing rooms.

'Front page of The Sunday Prophet, for sure,' laughed Ben, 'Maybe they'll even print a special edition in our honour.'

'We haven't actually won the match yet,' Victoria reminded them, although she couldn't help but have an enormous grin plastered across her face.

Two arms suddenly snaked around her waist.

'Don't be such a spoilsport, Potter,' laughed Sirius, pulling her towards him and ruffling her hair up.

'Hey!' she protested, gently slapping his hands away. Her black hair was messy enough on its own without external interference.

In retaliation, she ran both of her hands through Sirius' own hair, attempting to make him look as ruffled as she must have done.

It didn't work. No matter how messed up it was, his hair continued to flop down across his face in what could only be described as an incredibly attractive manner.

'Sorry, but that doesn't work, Potter,' grinned Sirius mischievously, 'You can't do anything to stop the sexiness that is Sirius Black.'

Victoria was about to respond, when Pippa suddenly called her.

'Shit, I think I dropped an earring. Will you help me look please, Vic?'

'Sure,' shrugged Victoria, slightly bemused at the request.

'Need some more help?' asked Ben.

Pippa gave him a withering look. 'Benjamin, I doubt you would recognise an earring if it hit you in the face. This is a girl thing. Don't worry, you guys go on.'

And with that, she practically dragged Victoria back to the pitch, while the rest of the team disappeared into the changing rooms.

'Okay, so what does it look like?' asked Victoria.

'Who knows? I haven't worn earrings for two years,' said Pippa shortly, 'Now, what is going on with you and Sirius?'

'You sneaky little-'

'Go on,' urged Pippa, waving away the personal slight, 'You two have been flirting all evening.'

'Is it that obvious?'

'Yes! Luckily everyone else on the team seems to be completely oblivious.'

Victoria hesitated for a moment. On the one hand, confessing her feelings to Pippa would make the situation into a much bigger deal than it actually was. But on the other hand, the thought of finally unburdening herself onto someone was really quite appealing.

'Okay, so maybe I do like him,' admitted Victoria slowly.

'I knew it!' exclaimed Pippa triumphantly, 'I can't believe I picked up on this before Georgina! I'm never going to let her hear the end of it.'

'No!' gasped Victoria, 'You can't tell anyone!'

'You're not going to tell Georgina or Lucy?' asked Pippa in confusion.

'I can't! Lucy fancied Sirius until recently, didn't she? Plus if I tell Georgina then Ben is bound to find out. And if he finds out then Alex will definitely hear about it.'

'What a pickle,' commented Pippa.

'Wow. What great advice,' said Victoria sarcastically.

'You want my advice?'

'Sure.'

Pippa grinned in a deeply satisfied way. 'Don't worry about Lucy. She is definitely over Sirius by now and will be more than happy for you. Alex may be a little surprised, but you're pretty much back to being best friends already. Everything will resolve itself.'

'You think?' asked Victoria uncertainly.

'I'm positive. Now, you go and get yourself Sirius Black, because he definitely wants you too.'

**So I have to apologise for two things. First of all, this chapter is a little shorter than normal, and secondly, I know I haven't posted for ages! I do have an excuse, and that is that I'm currently travelling across South East Asia, which has pretty much been my dream for years. That obviously means that I haven't had access to computers, or the time to do much writing. Therefore, I will aim to have the next chapter up within a week's time, but please be patient if I don't quite manage that. **

**Also, I'm not sure how well formatted this chapter is. I normally like to put a line in between different stages of the chapter, but that option seems to have disappeared from the upload box.**

**Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. The next update will feature the Quidditch match and its aftermath. I can promise developments in both Victoria and Sirius' relationship, and also James and Lily's. There will also be something of an altercation between James and Snape in the next chapter.**

**I realise that there are many characters that I'm yet to explore properly. Remus will feature more heavily pretty soon (hopefully it's already been hinted that Victoria will eventually have to find out about the werewolf- Animagus thing.) I also plan on including a little more about Peter, who I've definitely neglected so far (mainly because I don't like him!)**

**If you have any comment, no matter how small, then please leave me a review! A every fanfic author knows, they are the nicest things to read.**

**Until next time... x **


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight **

For what felt like the first time in weeks, Victoria actually managed a decent night's sleep the night before the match. Perhaps it was the relief of having confided in Pippa, or maybe the reassuring anticipation of Quidditch had been responsible for sending her off. Whatever it was, Victoria was grateful.

She did not, however, feel the same about her wake-up call the following morning.

'Victoriaaaaa!'

Very reluctantly, Victoria opened her eyes to see Lucy jumping manically around the room. When it came to Quidditch, Lucy must have been the world's most enthusiastic spectator. Once, at a Puddlemore- Montrose match, the referee had had to make a special announcement asking if 'the young, blonde woman could please be quiet.'

'Are you ready, Vic?' asked Pippa from her own bed.

'I think so,' grinned Victoria, as the standard pre-match thrill jolted through her stomach. 'Are you?'

Seeing Pippa only served to remind Victoria of her friend's words the previous evening.

'_Go get yourself Sirius Black, because he definitely wants you too.'_

Maybe a nice win for Gryffindor would help facilitate that, thought Victoria, as she climbed out of bed.

'Georgie, show Vic and Pippa the t-shirts!' demanded Lucy excitedly.

'What t-shirts?' asked Pippa warily.

'I want you both to bear in mind that it was Lucy, not me, who was responsible for these,' grinned Georgina.

She reached into her trunk and produced two tops. One was gold, and emblazoned with Victoria's name, while the other was red and bore Pippa's. Both featured a Gryffindor lion on the back that appeared to actually roar.

'Brilliant!' exclaimed Victoria and Pippa at the same time, causing everyone to burst out laughing.

'We're going to be your fan girls!' declared Lucy happily.

The four girls quickly got changed into their robes- or, in Lucy and Georgina's case, Gryffindor t-shirts and jeans- and then headed down to breakfast together.

The common room and corridors were abnormally busy for a Saturday morning; clearly a good turnout could be expected at the match.

On their way down to the Hall, countless Gryffindors shouted good luck to Victoria and Pippa and, when they reached the Great Hall, the entire Gryffindor table got to its feet and cheered.

Victoria smiled despite the gradually building nerves, and led the way along the table to where the rest of the team were already seated.

Maggie and Keith looked terrified at the prospect of their first match, and neither were touching any food; Ben had a steely, determined look about him, although he was sitting in silence; Sirius was working his way through a bacon sandwich, looking completely at ease; and James was muttering away to himself about last minute tactics.

Without really thinking about it, Victoria squeezed herself into the space between James and Sirius. Pippa smirked at this as she took her own seat besides Maggie. Georgina, meanwhile, sat next to Ben and took his hand, while Lucy sat on James' other side, nest to Remus.

'Morning,' said James distractedly. Then his eyes fell on Lucy's t-shirt, which was emblazoned with Victoria's name. 'Ha! Brilliant idea!'

Peter- who was seated on Sirius' other side- laughed along sycophantically until Sirius elbowed him.

'Remus was responsible for the charm on the lion,' admitted Lucy.

Remus smiled in his usual modest way, and poured Lucy a glass of pumpkin juice.

'Feeling ready, Vic?' asked Sirius, his voice sounding entirely relaxed despite the impending match.

This was textbook Sirius; he never allowed his confidence to slip. A lot of people found this attitude to be one of arrogance, but Victoria personally found it reassuring. The fact that Sirius was never fazed gently reminded her that a lot of things really weren't worth worrying about.

'Yes, I think so,' replied Victoria, and she realized that she truly meant what she said. While she was nervous about her first appearance as Seeker, she also felt as prepared as she would ever be.

'That's the spirit,' grinned Sirius, 'Coffee?'

They both reached for the coffee pot at the same time. Their hands bumped together, sending electric sparks shooting through Victoria's entire body.

'If you want to hold my hand, you only have to ask, Potter.'

Victoria rolled her eyes at Sirius. Was that an invitation?!

'How are you feeling, Ben?' she asked, in an attempt to distract herself.

'Huh? What?'

Ben had just been stroking the ends of Georgina's hair, and looked rather surprised that there were in fact other people around.

'Focus, Benjamin,' instructed James sternly, 'If she's going to be a distraction then she's banned from the match.'

'Hey!' protested Georgina. She gestured to her t-shirt. 'I'm Pippa's fan girl, remember?'

'She's right,' said Pippa, her voice deadly serious, 'I don't think I'll even be able to catch the Quaffle if Georgie isn't there dancing around.'

Everyone laughed, even Maggie and Keith, both of whom were faintly green in colour.

James spent the next ten minute or so attempting to force the team to eat high-energy foods. He was just in the process of trying to force feed Keith a banana, when the arrival of the post interrupted the spectacle.

'James, this is from Mum and Dad!' exclaimed Victoria excitedly.

While their parents were normally diligent writers, they were putting so many hours into work that they seemed to barely have time for eating and sleeping, let alone for anything else.

Victoria read the letter aloud so that her brother could also hear what it said.

'_Dear James and Victoria, _

_First of all, we must apologise. It's an awful excuse, but work has been so busy that we honestly haven't had the time to write half as much as we would like._

_Good luck in the match today, especially to you, Vic. Please let us know how your first time at playing seeker goes! Pass on our luck to the rest of the team._

_We hope everything else is going as well as usual. James, what has happened to our son? We've yet to receive a single letter about detentions or bad behaviour! Please do tell us if you feel you need a visit to St Mungo's for a head check. Seriously though, well done. We are proud of you both. _

_Say hello to Sirius for us. We realize that now he has his own flat, he probably won't want to spend the whole holiday at ours anymore. However, please inform him that Christmas dinner is obligatory. _

_All our love, _

_Mum and Dad.'_

'They're working too much,' said James the moment Victoria had finished reading.

'I suppose they don't have much choice,' she sighed, 'The Auror Office is in complete chaos at the moment.'

She looked down at her plate and picked at a piece of toast.

'Hey,' said Sirius, nudging her gently, 'They're fine. You know that. I can't imagine even Voldermort himself daring to take on your parents.'

Victoria chuckled, and leant her head against Sirius' shoulder for a moment.

Thankfully, a new figure suddenly appeared beside her and James, alerting her to what she was doing.

It was Lily Evans, a mass of red and gold.

'I just came over to say good luck to you all!' she beamed. Her eyes fell on Lucy and Georgina's t-shirts. 'Oh they are so cool! Do you like what I've done to my hair?'

Victoria noticed that she had blended thin streaks of gold into her red waves. They glittered whenever she moved her head, or tossed her hair over her shoulder.

'Well, I'll be watching,' smiled Lily.

She made to leave and then paused.

'Good luck, James.' And, while everyone else sat there with their mouths wide open, Lily leant down and gently kissed James on the check. Then she skipped back down the table, hair sparkling as she went.

God, that girl knew how to play, thought Victoria.

It took James a long while to string together a coherent sentence.

'Right team,' he announced, getting shakily to his feet. He looked dazed, and seemed to lose his trail of thought. 'Oh yeah. Right, Quidditch,' he said finally.

Shaking with laughter, Victoria also got to her feet. The team walked confidently across the Hall, Gryffindors screaming and cheering as they went.

By the time Victoria and the rest of the team had reached the full-to-bursting Quidditch pitch, she was experiencing a severe case of pre-match nerves.

For the first time, she would be playing Seeker, not Chaser. That meant the entire team was relying on her to score them the all important one hundred and fifty points.

'What if I mess up?' she asked of James, as the team gathered in the changing rooms, awaiting the beginning of the match.

'Then you'll be off the team.'

James' smirk softened at the look on his sister's face. 'You won't mess up, Vic.'

'No, you won't.' confirmed Sirius, 'I hope not anyway, or my reputation will be ruined since it was me who told you to try out.'

Victoria elbowed him in the ribs by way of response.

'Right, team,' began James, clapping his hands together, 'Hufflepuff aren't going to know what's hit them. We've got seven fantastic players, including two great new finds in the form of Maggie and Keith. Mark my words, we'll be lifting the Cup again at the end of this year.'

'But no pressure,' added Sirius, to Maggie and Keith, both of whom looked incapable of speech or movement.

'Okay, it's time.'

The team shouldered their broomsticks and walked out onto the pitch.

'Good luck,' said Victoria to Pippa, as they quickly squeezed each other's hands- a pre-match ritual ever since their first game in third year.

The stands were heaving with students, teachers and guests. A mass of red and gold at one end was chanting loudly, while a sea of yellow and black responded in turn. Victoria also noticed that while Ravenclaw was decidedly neutral, a significant number of Slytherins had chosen to don Hufflepuff colours.

Near the front of the SLytherin stand sat Snape, Avery, Mulciber, Bernard and Hunt, all of them looking as unpleasant as usual. Victoria noticed that Snape seemed to direct even more venom into his gaze towards James that normal- evidently Lily's display at breakfast hadn't gone unnoticed.

James moved forward to shake hands with Nicholas Smith, the insanely irritating Hufflepuff captain and keeper.

And then, suddenly, Madam Hooch blew her whistle and the two teams shot into the air.

Victoria immediately began circling the pitch from above, searching for the merest glimmer of gold. James had given her strict instructions to stay out of the action- and path of the bludgers- for as long as possible.

Meanwhile, an intense game was being played out below her. The Hufflepuff chasers had grown significantly better than last term, and were ensuring that James, Pippa and Maggie were having to work hard.

Not that hard though…

Victoria cheered along with the crowd as her brother brought the score up to 50-0 within ten minutes of the game commencing.

Shortly after Pippa put a neat goal past Smith, Victoria spotted a flash of gold. However, it turned out to be the streaks in Lily Evans' hair, as she danced around enthusiastically in her seat.

The Hufflepuff team also had decent beaters, and a couple of times Victoria had to hastily move out of the path of a well-hit bludger. Sirius- who seemed to be almost shadowing her- responded by sending them back towards Smith. The second time Sirius did this, the bludger made contact with the front of Smith's broom, and the Hufflepuff keeper had to make an elaborate grasp for the goalposts in order to stay in the air. Just as this was happening, Maggie threw the Quaffle right through the middle hoop. The Gryffindor spectators roared in delight, while the Slytherins' boos could be heard above the Hufflepuffs' groans.

This seemed to jolt the Hufflepuff cahsers into action, and they managed to put a couple of goals past an increasingly panicked Keith, bringing the score up to 70-20 in Gryffindor's favour.

It was just as Mike Turner- the commentator and Frank Longbottom's best friend- was announcing Hufflepuff's second goal, that Victoria suddenly shot across the pitch, the Snitch dancing before her.

Her Hufflepuff counterpart noticed her movement, and was soon on her tail, while one of the beaters aimed a bludger at her.

Victoria dodged the bludger, and chased after the Snitch, which was darting towards the Slytherin stand. Victoria threw out her right arm, and closed her fingers around the struggling Snitch. She swiped the ball out of the air, right in front of the disgusted faces of Snape, Avery, Mulciber, Bernard and Hunt.

And the stadium erupted.

James reached her first, practically throwing himself onto her broom.

'That's my sister!' he yelled again and again.

Laughing and cheering, the two of them managed to reach the ground, where they were immediately surrounded by masses of people. The team had landed beside them, while the Gryffindor spectators streamed onto the pitch in jubilation.

Sirius pulled Victoria into a hug so tight that he lifted her off the ground.

'That was amazing!' he shouted above the din of the crowd, 'You were amazing!'

Victoria couldn't remember ever having felt quite so ecstatic. She had done it. She had proved to everyone that she deserved to be seeker.

'Thank you so much for making me try out!'

Sirius waved this away, and beamed down at her. 'You only needed a little encouragement.'

Victoria smiled back up at him, watching his dark eyes dance with happiness. This would be the perfect moment. She just needed to kiss him.

But before she could act on the impulse, something behind Sirius caught her eye.

'Fuck me!'

'Excuse me?' smirked Sirius, raising an eyebrow.

Words failed Victoria. Instead she merely gaped at the scene. Curious, Sirius spun around, and his own mouth dropped open in pure shock.

Lily Evans had sprinted across the Quidditch pitch, along with the majority of their house. However, instead of merely slapping players on the back and shouting congratulations, Lily had thrown herself into the arms of a very bewildered looking James. They were now kissing so furiously, it was as if their lives depended on it.

'Did she get hit on the head by a stray bludger?' asked Sirius in disbelief.

Victoria couldn't help but glance up to the Slytherin stand above them. Avery, Mulciber, Bernard and Hunt were all muttering furiously about the match, but the fifth member of their party was conspicuously absent. Clearly Snape hadn't been enjoying the post-match entertainment as much as James currently was.

'What the hell is going on?' yelled Pippa in excitement.

She bounded up to Victoria and Sirius, with Ben hot on her heels, and gawked at James and Lily.

'Well done, everyone!'

Georgina ran up to them, and threw her arms around Ben. The two of them quickly began a similar display to what Lily and James were currently engaged in. Victoria, Sirius and Pippa took a hasty step away from them.

'All these kissing couples…' said Pippa, winking at Victoria.

'You were all amazing!' Lucy had arrived, dragging an amused looking Remus along by the hand.

'That catch was sensational, Vic!' she declared, 'And right under the Slytherins' noses!'

'Thanks!' beamed Victoria, hugging her friend; she felt positively elated.

'He's going to be a nightmare to live with now,' grinned Remus, gesturing to James, who was still eating Lily's face.

'Tell me about it,' groaned Sirius, 'I propose a motion to evict Prongs from our dorm,'

Everyone laughed at this.

They were soon joined by Alex, Peter, Alice and Frank.

Alex made to congratulate Ben, but hastily retreated when he saw that his friend was currently attached to Georgina. Instead he made do with hugging Victoria and Pippa, and shaking Sirius' hand.

'Well done!' beamed Alice, 'Have you seen Maggie and Keith? They look so pleased with themselves.'

Victoria glanced across the pitch to where the two new team members had been hoisted onto the shoulders of some of their friends.

'Where James?' Peter asked of Sirius and Remus.

'How oblivious can you be, Wormtail?' exclaimed Sirius, rolling his eyes.

He pointed over to James and Lily, and Peter's mouth dropped open. Awe flickered across his little eyes.

Suddenly, McGonagall's voice appeared, magically magnified so that the entire stadium could hear her.

'I want this pitch cleared within five minutes. May I remind you that pitch invasions are not permitted! And Potter, Evans, unless you cease that display at once, I will strip both of you of your Headships.'

Laughing hysterically, Victoria and the others joined the crowd streaming back up to the castle.

It was as if they had won the Cup already.

'And then she just threw herself at me. Absolutely no warning.'

An hour or so later, Victoria and James were on their way back from the kitchens. As usual, the house elves had been more than obliging to provide food for the post-match party that had erupted in the Gryffindor common room. Sirius and Peter, meanwhile, had been dispatched to Hogsmede for Butterbeer.

'You don't seem to have any complaints though,' smirked Victoria, as she and James climbed the stairs from the basement to the Entrance Hall, their arms laden with food.

'Well of course not! This is the woman of my dreams we're talking about. The one I'm going to marry!' exclaimed James, getting carried away with himself, 'Wow, this is going to be one good party!'

James and Lily had walked back up to the castle arm in arm, pausing to kiss every few seconds. This had temporarily been halted while Lily went to change, but Victoria was certain that neither Lily nor James would be much company at the party.

Victoria was just about to speak again, when a lone figure skulked into the Entrance Hall from the grounds.

It was Snape.

Upon noticing James, Snape dived for his wand, and sent an unknown hex flying through the room. James blocked it, and gave Snape a look of great contempt.

To Victoria's surprise, James then pocketed his wand, and began making his way up the stairs. Snape stood there, looking rather dumbstruck.

'Oh yeah, you expected me to curse you, right?' said James suddenly, turning back round to look down at Snape. 'Well sorry to disappoint you, Snivellus, but I have better things to do right now. Got to go, Lily is waiting.'

And with that as his parting comment, he jogged up the remainder of the stairs, humming happily.

'You can be a real tosser sometimes. You know that, right?' said Victoria, as the two of them continued their trek back to the common room.

James shrugged unconcernedly, 'He had it coming. Besides, that felt so good.'

The party was in full swing by the time Victoria and James arrived. Someone had found a wireless and tuned it to a popular channel, and the armchairs and tables had all been pushed into the corners so that people could mill around and dance in the centre of the room.

Victoria checked her watch. It was barely lunchtime- this was going to be one hell of a fun day.

While James handed out food, and then went to loiter at the bottom of the girls' staircase so that Lily couldn't possibly miss him when she came down, Victoria went to join Lucy, Pippa, Georgina, Ben and Alex.

'I feel as though I should have gotten more sleep in preparation for this!' said Alex, glancing around the room, which was filling up with students.

'Wait until Sirius and Peter come back with the drinks!' laughed Pippa.

'They're only getting Butterbeer, aren't they?' asked Georgina.

Victoria couldn't help but snort with laughter at this. 'Oh believe me, Firewhiskey will be involved. Before they turned seventeen James and Sirius always used to sneak out to the pub, and then climb back in through my bedroom window, thinking it was James'.'

A moment later, Remus, Frank and Alice wandered over to them, accompanied by the Ravenclaw Mike Turner, who was trying and failing to act inconspicuous.

'Here you go,' said Remus, holding a plate of custard creams out to Lucy, 'They will blow your mind.'

Lucy took one of the biscuits and bit into it.

'Alright, I concede defeat,' she admitted, holding her hands up, 'They are pretty good.'

'Erm, care to explain?' asked Victoria, as the rest of them watched the strange exchange.

'Lucy has never eaten custard creams before, and yet she claims they are disgusting,' said Remus, as if this explained everything.

'And I have to admit that they are not,' conceded Lucy, laughing up at Remus. He smiled back at her, and the two of them began chattering away about something.

'Erm, alright then,' said Pippa, shooting everyone else a look that clearly showed she was questioning the sanity of Remus and Lucy.

'Do you think something is going on there?' Pippa asked of Victoria, when the two of them went to get themselves some food a few minutes later.

Victoria glanced back over to Remus and Lucy. They were sitting in a pair of armchairs, talking about something that must have been amusing since they were both laughing their heads off.

'I suppose they have been spending a lot of time together recently,' reasoned Victoria, as she helped herself to a couple of sandwiches, 'But, come on, this is Lucy we're talking about. She would have told me if she liked him.'

'You haven't told her that you like Sirius,' Pippa shrewdly pointed out.

'Yeah, I suppose you're right.'

A strange feeling suddenly washed over Victoria- a mix of sadness and nostalgia. For five years, she and Lucy had confessed every little secret and desire to each other, and had been the closest of friends. And yet now it was possible that they were both keeping crushes secret. What on earth had happened?

'Don't be glum!' ordered Pippa sternly, 'This is a party. To celebrate our amazing victory no less.'

As she said this, Sirius and Peter climbed through the portrait hole, carrying countless bags that all seemed to contain bottles.

Sirius pulled one of these bottles from a bag, and Victoria immediately recognized the amber liquid to be Firewhiskey.

'Ladies and Gentlemen,' announced Sirius, opening the bottle and taking a generous swig, 'Let the party commence!'

The party lasted all through the day and well into the night. At midnight it was still in full swing, since- by some miracle- McGonagall was yet to make an appearance in her tartan hairnet to tell them all to go to bed. It was a very good job that the deputy headmistress was nowhere to be seen, or else most of Gryffindor house would have been expelled on the spot. It had soon transpired that Sirius and Peter had fetched enough Firewhiskey to knock out the entire student body, and the Gryffindors had pounced on it like parched people did water.

Maggie, who had never had a drink before, had had two glasses before proceeding to launch herself at Keith. The snogging session had only ended when Keith started to look a little green from his own alcohol intake. After that, Victoria and Pippa quickly manhandled Maggie into bed before she could do anything else that she would regret the following morning.

It wasn't just Maggie and Keith, however. Ben had been forced to down some Dutch courage in order to comply with Georgina's demands for a slow dance, when her favourite song came on the wireless; Frank and the Ravenclaw, Mike Turner, had managed to invent a drinking game that involved downing Firewhiskey from each other's shoes; and, Peter had had no more than three glasses before passing out in an armchair, after which Sirius had quickly drawn a moustache onto his drooling face.

It seemed that only four of the older students had passed up on the alcohol. James and Lily were entwined in an armchair in the corner of the room, clearly too intoxicated by one another to need any other stimulants. Also, Remus and Lucy had also sat together for most of the party, sharing a large plate of custard cream and laughing at each other's rubbish jokes.

'This has been one of the best days ever!' declared Victoria, sinking into the sofa, next to Sirius.

Both of them were definitely drunk, although not crazily so.

'Cheers to that,' agreed Sirius, clinking his glass against hers.

They drank in silence for a moment.

Sirius glanced across the room to where James and Lily were holding hands and gazing at each other in a way that made Victoria feel faintly sick.

'I'm glad that's finally happened,' sighed Sirius, 'They should be together.'

'Do you believe that?' asked Victoria curiously, 'Do you believe that two people are meant to be together more than they're meant to be with anyone else?'

Sirius rested his arm around the back of the sofa, so that he was practically touching Victoria's back, and regarded her with a look of surprise. 'Of course. Do you not?'

A few weeks ago, Victoria would probably have answered that she didn't. Her experience with Alex had taught her that much. It wasn't always clear what was supposed to happen between two people, and you had to explore a bit to find that out.

But now? She wasn't so sure. As she sat there with Sirius, the truth of his words struck her. Two people were supposed to be together. And at that moment, as his dark eyes looked into hers, waiting for her answer, she firmly believed that the two of them were an example of this.

'Maybe,' she conceded, 'Well yes, I suppose I do.'

Sirius smiled at her and then glanced back over to James and Lily.

'I suppose it's just a case of the two people both realizing that,' he sighed.

'Yeah,' agreed Victoria.

And because she was tipsy and tired, she leant her head onto Sirius's chest. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close to him. And that was how they sat for a good hour or so until Remus, waving the Map in his hand, shouted that they'd all better get to bed because McGonagall was on her way.

**Hope the chapter was okay! **

**As you can see, we're gradually getting there with Victoria and Sirius….**

**Thanks for the lovely comments I had for the last chapter, and please please please leave me a review **

**Until next time….. x **


	9. Chapter 9

******Chapter Nine **

The morning after the victory party, Gryffindor tower was a very quiet place. Everyone had been up until the early hours, only racing to bed after Remus had checked the Map and informed them all that McGonagall was on her way. Judging by the noise Victoria had heard later on, some people had even carried on the celebrations after their Head of House had left.

No one was particularly lively in the sixth year girls' dormitory that morning.

'Never let me drink again,' moaned Pippa from her bed. She was buried under a mass of blankets and pillows, massaging her temples.

'No chance!' laughed Victoria from her own bed, 'You were hilarious.'

'I think my personal highlight,' chipped in Lucy, 'Was when you and Mike Turner downed Firewhiskey from each other shoes, and then proceeded to dance on the table whilst singing "Yellow Submarine."'

'You can't beat a bit of The Beatles when drunk,' reasoned Pippa, 'Besides, I'm surprised you noticed. All you seemed to do was sit and eat custard creams with Remus.'

'And what's the problem with that?' retorted Lucy, slightly defensively.

'Nothing, nothing,' said Pippa, 'We were just wondering what was going on there.'

'We're friends,' stated Lucy simply.

'But you'd like to be more?' pressed Victoria curiously. She was determined to get to the bottom of Lucy and Remus' new found closeness.

Lucy shrugged, 'I don't know. I'm not sure that Remus is too interested. He's very guarded, as if there's something he's not telling me.'

A sudden intake of breath from Georgina- who was sleeping across the room- caught all three of the girls' attention.

'Can we wake her up yet?' asked Victoria, watching their friend roll over in her sleep.

At about ten o clock the previous evening, Pippa had bounded up to Victoria and excitedly informed her that Georgina and Ben were nowhere to be found. The couple in question had emerged sometime later, looking flustered but pleased with themselves. However, Georgina had fallen asleep before the girls had had the chance to interrogate her.

'We should really let her sleep,' reasoned Lucy, 'You know how much homework she has to do today.'

'No chance!' countered Pippa, 'I want to know what happened last night!'

And with that, Pippa leapt from her own bed, straight onto Georgina's.

'What the hell is your problem?' came Georgina's muffled voice. It was muffled because Pippa had landed right on top of her. Georgina shoved her off and sat up.

'What did you and Ben get up to last night?' demanded Pippa instantly.

Georgina's annoyed expression was immediately replaced by a coy smile.

'Well,' she began, taking a deep breath and grinning at the other three, 'We may have slept together.'

Pippa let out a gasp, and fell off Georgina's bed in shock.

'Georgina Elizabeth Augustine Parker!' she exclaimed sarcastically from the floor, 'I expected better behaviour from such a well brought up lady!'

'Oh shut up!' laughed Georgina, extending a hand to help Pippa back up onto the bed.

'How was it?' asked Victoria, who was insanely curious.

Georgina seemed to consider the matter for a moment.

'It was good, I suppose,' she said after a while.

Victoria and Pippa exchanged disappointed looks. 'That's it?'

Lucy rolled her eyes at them. 'Believe me, your first time is not what it's cracked up to be.'

'That's true' agreed Georgina, contemplating the matter, 'I did enjoy it. But it was a little awkward, and a bit embarrassing. And messy.'

'Ewh,' complained Pippa.

'The second time is better,' Lucy reassured her.

Until last night, Lucy had been the only one of the four girls to have had sex. She'd done it in the Easter holidays of their fifth year, with a childhood friend whose family had holidayed in France with Lucy's for the past decade. Now that Georgina had also done it, Victoria felt rather inexperienced.

A sudden image flashed into her mind of her and Sirius rolling around on a bed together.

Her mind drifted back to the previous evening. The two of them had actually cuddled on the sofa for about an hour. Neither of them had said much, they had just lain there, sleepy and content.

'Well, I think I need some coffee to get over that bombshell,' announced Pippa, 'Anyone care to join me?'

'Sorry,' apologised Lucy, 'But I have no plans to leave my bed for several hours.'

'Me neither,' agreed Georgina.

'I'll come with you,' offered Victoria, 'But it'll have to be a PJ breakfast though.'

'They're the best kind!' exclaimed Pippa excitedly.

Victoria, Pippa and Lucy had first gone down to breakfast in their pyjamas in fifth year (Georgina had refused to.) McGonagall had told them off, but a few days later Pippa had sifted through an old volume of school records and had- unbelievably- found a quote from Rowena Ravenclaw herself that stated that fifth years and above should be permitted to eat breakfast in their night clothes on Sunday mornings. Since then PJ breakfasts had become something of a tradition.

Victoria and Pippa headed down the girls' staircase to find the common room resembling a bombsite.

Several students had simply passed out down there, rather than undertaking the effort of climbing the stairs to bed. Peter was still snoring away on his sofa, with the moustache that Sirius had drawn horribly prominent on his face.

The Ravenclaw Mike Turner was sprawled across a rug by the fireplace, clearly not having made it back to his own common room. Pippa nudged her with his foot, and he jolted awake.

'Good morning, Ravenclaw Mike Turner,' she said.

'Ah, my kindred spirit. Fancy an encore of "Yellow Submarine?"'

'Are you still drunk?' Pippa asked him.

'It's a distinct possibility,' he agreed.

'We'll bring you some coffee,' promised Victoria.

The two girls headed to the portrait hole, leaving Mike to hum Beatles songs to himself.

'I'm surprised at Georgie and Ben,' commented Pippa, once they were out of earshot of other people.

'Me too,' agreed Victoria, 'It makes me feel quite inexperienced actually!'

Pippa snorted at this. 'You're not even seventeen until December, chill out! Besides, you and Sirius looked pretty cosy last night.'

'You saw that?'

'Yep. Mike and I had an excellent view of the room when we were dancing on the tables.'

'Sirius gave me the impression that he likes me too.'

Pippa rolled her eyes, as though as Victoria were a small child struggling to comprehend that one plus one equalled two. 'Of course he does.'

'I don't want to get it wrong though,' explained Victoria, 'Maybe I should just spend some time with him and see what happens.'

'Fine. But don't skirt around the issue for too long. I don't think I can stand the waiting anymore.'

After Gryffindor's victory against Hufflepuff, term seemed to speed by in the blink of an eye. There was NEWT work to be completed, Quidditch practice, and plenty of altercations with the Slytherins, who were furious about Gryffindor's success. The Slytherin team were due to play Ravenclaw at the start of December, and were training almost daily in an attempt to secure a victory.

In the midst of this, Georgina and Ben continued to date. It could also be assumed that they gradually perfected their technique in certain areas as term progressed; Georgina's stories became so detailed that Pippa soon banned even the mention of the word sex from their dormitory.

Meanwhile, Victoria subtly observed Lucy and Remus, both of whom continued to spend a lot of time together. They would eat meals together, study in the library, and chat away in the common room most evenings. It didn't seem to have taken a romantic turn quite yet, but Victoria was positive that it soon would. They fitted so well together that Victoria couldn't imagine a single issue that had the potential to stand in their way.

However, no one apart from Victoria was particularly interested in Lucy and Remus. For the rest of term, the school could only talk about one thing: James Potter and Lily Evans. They had been a couple ever since their display on the Quidditch pitch. Just as many had long suspected, it soon emerged that Lily had indeed liked James for a while; she had merely been waiting for him to deflate his head a little.

James and Lily quickly became inseparable, and could regularly be found snogging each others' faces off in corridors or in the common room. While Victoria found this rather sickening to witness, she was incredibly pleased for them both. Her brother was happier than she'd ever seen him, and Lily seemed to have a constant grin on her face these days.

However, there was one person who wasn't quite so happy about this new development, and that was Severus Snape. As term progressed, Snape was rarely seen venturing above the dungeons, except for classes, and rumours had reached Victoria's ears that he spent most of his time shut away in his dormitory. James, of course, absolutely relished this. It was true that he never broached the subject in front of Lily, but Victoria had frequently overheard her brother and Sirius laughing about it.

Despite herself, Victoria couldn't help but feel a degree of sympathy for Snape. That was until, one afternoon in mid- November, she had the pleasure of running into Snape, Bernard and Hunt on her way to the library.

'Come on, Snape! Just tell me what the main ingredients are!' complained Bernard, as the three Slytherins made their way down the corridor.

Victoria chuckled to herself. Clearly Bernard was having difficulty with Slughorn's latest essay on the Draught of Living Death. All three Slytherins looked up at the noise and noticed her.

'What are you doing here, Potter?' asked Hunt, an evil smirk dancing across his features.

'I'm on my way to the library. You know, that big room with all the books.'

She made to push past them, but Hunt grabbed hold of her arm.

'Don't touch me!' she snapped, wrenching her arm from his grip.

'Ooh touchy!' laughed Bernard, 'Bet you don't say that to Black.'

'Regulus swears you're together,' pressed Hunt.

'Well he's wrong,' said Victoria shortly.

'I hope so for your sake,' said Snape, speaking for the first time.

'What is that supposed to mean?' snapped Victoria angrily.

'All I'm saying is that Black will get what's coming to him,' smirked Snape, his lips curling, 'Your brother too. I'd personally love to be the one to finally get rid of him.'

Victoria burst into a laugh that was full of mirth.

'And what do you think that will achieve? Are you really that delusional that you believe that if you get rid of my brother then Lily will just fall at your feet?'

With that, Victoria shoved past the Slytherins, and hurried around the corner into the library.

'Vic!'

Lily Evans was seated alone, practically hidden by a pile of books, and was waving Victoria over to join her.

'I've just been talking about you,' said Victoria, as she dropped into a seat at the table.

'All good I hope. Who to?'

'Snape,' grimaced Victoria.

Lily's smile was immediately replaced by a rather set expression.

'Great,' she sighed.

'I'm really sorry,' said Victoria honestly, 'He just annoyed me by saying stuff about James and Sirius.'

'What did he say?' asked Lily sharply, her eyes narrowing.

Victoria hesitated, but the look on Lily's face told her that she wouldn't get away with not explaining the full story.

'He said that he'd love to be the one to kill James,' admitted Victoria.

Lily swore, and threw down her quill in frustration.

'It's all so childish!' she exclaimed, running a hand through her red hair. 'I can't believe he's the same boy I used to be best friends with.'

'He lives near your parents, right?'

Lily nodded, 'Yeah. I met him about six months before I got my Hogwarts letter. He was the first one to tell me about magic.'

'Wow,' said Victoria, who hadn't known that. No wonder they had been such good friends. It had been Snape who had reassure Lily that she wasn't strange or abnormal, but just part of a different world.

'I'm confused,' admitted Victoria 'How does he befriend a Muggleborn, and then reconcile that with all of the pro- Voldermort rubbish he espouses?'

'God knows,' sighed Lily, 'I used to believe he was a good person deep down, despite all of that. But these past couple of years I've been so sure.'

'I'm sorry,' said Victoria truthfully, after a while, 'I'm sorry you lost your friend.'

'So was I. But I'm over it now.'

Victoria wasn't entirely sure that she believed her, but Lily suddenly asked how Potions was going, and so Victoria let the matter rest.

At the end of November, the final Hogsmede visit of term quickly came around. There was thick snow on the ground, and a Christmassy chill in the air. In short, it was the perfect day for a fun trip into the village.

For Victoria, the day was due to be even better, since she had arranged to spend it with Sirius. Admittedly there had been nothing romantic in the forming of this plan, but she still viewed as a step in the right direction.

Obviously James and Lily were going together, as were Georgina and Ben. Meanwhile, Lucy and Remus had made plans together, despite constant protests that they were nothing more than good friends. Peter had once again managed to land himself a detention, this time with McGonagall, and Alex had developed a bout of the flu and was refusing to leave the warmth of the common room. That just left Pippa, but as soon as Sirius had asked her and Victoria if they wanted to all go to the village, Pippa had made an excuse about having already made plans with Mike Turner.

'Well I feel like a sad case,' declared Victoria, as she and Sirius walked into snow-covered Hogsmede together.

'Why?'' asked Sirius, who was looking particularly good in a dark woollen coat, and striped scarf.

'Apart from Peter and Alex, all of our friends have dates!'

Sirius laughed and offered her his arm. 'I suppose you'll have to make do with me then, Potter.'

Victoria skidded slightly on the icy path and quickly took his arm. It struck her that to everyone else, they probably looked exactly like a couple on a Christmas date to Hogsmede. This thought made her feel somewhat excited, as did the physical contact between the two of them.

It was incredibly pleasant wandering around the village with Sirius, especially since the fresh snow made everything look so scenic.

They ducked into Honeydukes and bought fat, creamy fudges that warmed their insides; Victoria lost Sirius' attention for a good half an hour, while he wandered around Zonko's with an expression akin to that of an excitable five year old let loose in a toy shop; and, they took a walk up to the Shrieking Shack where Sirius decided to pelt Victoria with snowballs.

'You're like a dog that has been let off its lead for the first time,' commented Victoria, as they stepped into the warmth of the Three Broomsticks, pulling their scarves and gloves off.

'Yeah, yeah. You love it really,' said Sirius. His hand drifted to her hair, and he gently brushed something out of it. 'You had snow in your hair.'

'And whose fault is that?' retorted Victoria, trying to ignore the butterflies that his touch had produced.

Sirius winked at her, and let the way to the crowded bar. After much waiting and subtle pushing, they found themselves being served by Rosmerta, the young and attractive barmaid that had long nursed a soft spot for both Sirius and James.

'Hello, you,' she grinned at Sirius.

'Afternoon, Rosmerta,' replied Sirius, leaning an elbow on the bar, 'Two Firewhiskeys please.'

'No chance!' she scoffed, fluttering her eyelashes, 'Minerva would have my job if she found out I was serving students.'

'Ah well I'd hate to be the one to get you sacked. I don't think I'd be able to sleep when I'm in my bed at night.'

'Well I'm sure I could help with-'

Victoria cleared her throat loudly, effectively cutting off Rosmerta. 'We'll just have two Butterbeers please.'

'Coming right up,' said Rosmerta, looking a little disappointed as she noticed Victoria.

'You were flirting with her!' Victoria said to Sirius, as the two of them wove their way across the room and reached a small table in the corner.

'Jealous?' grinned Sirius, as he took his coat off.

Victoria was momentarily distracted by the sight before her. Sirius was wearing a dark jumper that was just about tight enough to hint at his muscular chest and arms. He ran a hand through his damp hair, and leant back in his chair, looking entirely at ease.

'Oh you got me there!' said Victoria, recovering herself, 'I was just standing there wishing that you were discussing your bed with me instead.'

'Wow, that was saucy, Potter!' laughed Sirius. He leant forward, so that their faces were inches apart, and then swung one of his arms over the back of Victoria's chair. 'Maybe I should I try flirting with you instead. God knows what your dirty mind could come up with.'

'Well, unfortunately for you, Black, I guess you'll never find out just how dirty my mind is.'

'That's a shame,' whispered Sirius.

He was so close now. His lips were practically brushing her own. Strands of their hair were mixed up with the others. Sirius slid his arm down from the chair, and instead wrapped it around Victoria's shoulders, pulling her even nearer to him. She closed her eyes and waited, anticipating the feel and taste of his lips. This was it, it was happening now.

'Hi guys!'

Victoria and Sirius jumped apart as though they had both simultaneously received electric shocks.

Peter was standing by their table, seemingly oblivious to what he had just interrupted.

'McGonagall was called into a meeting with Dumbledore, so she let me out of detention early!' explained Peter excitedly. He grabbed a nearby spare chair, and placed it directly between Victoria and Sirius.

'I've been looking all over for you lot,' he continued, taking a swig of Sirius' Butterbeer, 'I did see James and Lily, but I didn't want to be the third wheel.'

'Heaven forbid,' muttered Sirius, yanking his drink back from Peter, and downing the entire thing in one gulp.

**Firstly, let me apologise for how short this chapter was compared to usual! To make it up to you all, I can promise that the Victoria- Sirius situation will resolve itself within the next few chapters! Of course, the story will go on after that. **

**Also, I'm home from my trip now, which means that I'll be able to post much more regularly. I'm hoping to upload the next chapter later on this week. **

**I hope you're enjoying what's happening in the story so far. If you have any comments or ideas then please let me know. Apart from that, thanks for reading, and please leave me a review! **

**x **


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten **

'And he was definitely going to kiss you?'

'Yes, Pippa!' exclaimed Victoria, rolling her eyes, 'I may not be a self-styled man expert like Georgina, but if Peter hadn't arrived then Sirius and I would have been snogging in The Three Broomsticks.'

'Bloody Peter,' sighed Pippa.

'Bloody Peter,' Victoria agreed.

Victoria had returned from her trip into Hogsmede in a thoroughly disgruntled mood. Peter had tagged along with her and Sirius for the remainder of the day, and it was fair to say that this did a good job of killing the possibilities for hooking up. Once they'd gotten back to the castle, Victoria had stomped up to the dormitory. Pippa had arrived shortly after, and Victoria had been filling her in on events ever since.

'Look on the bright side. There will probably be another opportunity fairly soon,' reasoned Pippa.

'Do you think?' asked Victoria eagerly, removing the pillow from her face, and sitting up on her bed.

'Definitely! When has Sirius Black ever given up on a girl so easily?'

Victoria was about to reply, when the door to their dormitory suddenly flew open. Georgina toppled through it, and landed with a thud onto the floor.

'I knew it!' she exclaimed dramatically, pulling herself up from the carpet, and pointing an accusing finger at Victoria. 'I knew you liked Sirius.'

'Why on earth were you listening at the door?' asked Victoria.

'Well it seemed like you didn't want to tell me anything. And I had to find out somehow, didn't I?'

'Sorry,' said Victoria truthfully, 'It wasn't that I didn't want to tell you. I just don't want loads of people to find out before anything happens. And I don't want Lucy to hear about it yet- you know she used to have a thing for Sirius.'

Georgina waved this away, and walked over to Pippa's bed, which was the closest one to Victoria's.

'Budge up!' she instructed Pippa.

Pippa sighed dramatically and shifted over so that Georgina could sit down too.

'So,' began Georgina, clapping her hands together, 'What's the plan? Are you going to talk to him? What are you going to say? Christ, what are you going to wear?'

'This is exactly why Vic didn't tell you anything,' said Pippa, throwing Georgina an incredulous look.

'Well considering that she's only had your advice so far, I'm surprised that she and Sirius have so much as been in the same room together,' Georgina retorted.

Victoria laughed at their bickering. 'I think I'll wait and see if he talks to me. And if not I'll bring it up next weekend.'

'Why next weekend?' asked Georgina.

'Well he'll be busy during the week with NEWT work. You know we barely see the seventh years at the moment. But there's no way he'll be working at the weekend. Plus, Slytherin are playing Ravenclaw on Saturday.'

'And what does Quidditch have to do with anything?' frowned Georgina.

Pippa rolled her eyes at her, and then turned her attention to Victoria. 'Great idea. If Ravenclaw win then we'll inevitably have a party. Everyone will be in a good mood, and it'll be the perfect time. But if Slytherin win then you can talk to him in order to cheer yourselves up.'

'Exactly,' agreed Victoria. She grinned to herself; maybe this time next week she would be dating Sirius Black.

'I'm sure he'll bring it up himself,' said Georgina, 'But yeah, you're probably right about him waiting until the weekend.'

Victoria threw herself back onto her pillows and kicked her legs around excitedly.

'So how were both of your days?' she asked Pippa and Georgina after a few moments.

'Brilliant!' they both replied at the exact same time.

They looked at each other and burst out laughing. 'Okay, you go first,' offered Pippa.

'Ben and I had such a lovely time,' said Georgina, 'We had lunch at Madam Puddifoot's- oh shut up!' she said, for Pippa had just made an audible vomiting sound at the mention of the infamous teashop. 'Anyway, then we just had a wander around the shops. I bought some new dress robes.'

'What on earth do you need new dress robes for?' protested Pippa, 'You already have ten pairs, and there is no occasion that calls for them this school year!'

'They were nice,' shrugged Georgina, 'Oh yeah! I forget to say. Ben and I had a run in with some Slytherins.'

'What?' exclaimed Victoria and Pippa at the same time, 'What happened?'

'Oh not much,' Georgina reassured them. 'We ran into Hunt and Bernard in Honeydukes. They made a couple of comments, just like usual. The old Bat Bogey Hex sorted them out pretty quickly.'

'You used wands?' exclaimed Victoria.

'Georgie, you must just ignore them. We need to save our efforts until we're out there and it counts. Making enemies of future Death Eaters won't achieve anything,' added Pippa desperately.

'You don't understand,' protested Georgina stubbornly, 'you don't know what it feels like to be called a Mudblood. It's as if I don't belong here.'

'I understand how horrible that must be,' agreed Pippa, 'But you and Ben need to control your tempers. If you don't then you're going to get yourselves killed the moment we leave these walls.'

'We can't argue about this,' interjected Victoria, before Georgina could respond, 'That's what they want. We have to stick together. We can't let them cause divisions.'

'Well said,' agreed Pippa.

'You're right,' said Georgina, 'But believe me, the other side aren't waiting until we get out of this place. The war is going on around us, and we're already involved whether we like it or not.'

The week passed quickly, as had become custom for the term, and Victoria found herself with no opportunity to speak with Sirius alone. In between NEWT work, Quidditch practice and Prefect and Head duties, most of the sixth and seventh years found themselves with virtually no time to do anything else. However, late in the evenings, once as much homework as possible had been completed, Victoria, Pippa, Lucy, Georgina, Alex, Ben, Lily and the Marauders often collapsed into the comfy seats in the common room and hung out for a while before going to bed.

It was during such times that Victoria had her chances to see Sirius. While they didn't get any time alone, there was a large amount of flirting passing between them, something which made Victoria desperate for the weekend when they would have some time off from work, and a chance to talk.

Victoria was conscious that her brother or Lucy might pick up on the flirting, but that proved to be a pointless worry. James was still too wrapped up in Lily to notice anything else. Miraculously, he had managed to maintain his good grades, but everything else seemed to fade into the background when she was around.

Meanwhile, Lucy was entirely preoccupied with Remus. On the Monday after the Hogsmede trip, he had once again fallen ill, and was forced to spend several nights in the hospital wing, only emerging on Thursday evening. Understandably, the matter distressed Lucy, especially since no one seemed to know exactly what was wrong with Remus. The Marauders were always deliberately vague whenever the subject was brought up, while Remus himself simply maintained that he was just one of those people prone to illness. Victoria couldn't shake the feeling that there was something going on. There was a mystery about Remus' constant illnesses, and she was certain that James, Sirius and Peter were in on it.

On Saturday morning, Victoria was ready to demand the truth from them, after having spent the previous evening watching Remus constantly avoid the subject whenever Lucy tried to bring it up. However, as she entered the Great Hall for breakfast on that Saturday morning, something happened that served to push Remus' mysterious illness straight out of her mind.

On days when Quidditch matches were due to be held, breakfast was normally a very loud affair. The two teams would be surrounded by the rest of their house, insults would be exchanged between tables, and an excited buzz would swarm around the Hall.

There was none of this that morning, however. Victoria picked up on the sombre mood instantly, and she also noticed that everyone was very subdued. The teachers, meanwhile, were all in deep discussion, looking uncharacteristically grave.

Victoria, Pippa, Lucy and Georgina made their way along the Gryffindor table to where Ben, Alex, Sirius, Remus and Peter were already seated. A copy of the Daily Prophet lay on the table in between them, from which a single, large headline blared out at the reader.

'What's going on?' Victoria asked straight away, as she sat down next to Sirius.

It was Ben who answered, and it sounded as though he was speaking through gritted teeth, trying to keep his anger in check.

'There was a Death Eater attack on the Ministry last night,' he said quietly, 'They're saying that up to thirty Ministry employees have been killed. The Auror Office was decimated apparently.'

'What?!' Victoria practically shouted.

'Your parents are fine,' Sirius reassured her instantly, 'They weren't at the Ministry at the time. Your Dad was quoted in the paper this morning explaining that the Auror Office is still fully operational.'

'Are you sure?' she urged.

'I promise,' said Sirius, gently. He reached out to where Victoria's hand was resting on the bench, and covered it with his own.

'Who was it?' asked Lucy, 'Which Death Eaters were responsible?'

'No one's really sure on facts at the moment,' said Remus, 'But the Prophet has mentioned Rosier, Dolohov, the Lestranges...'

Sirius made a disgusted noise at the sound of the Lestranges' names. 'My family's finest,' he said bitterly.

Victoria moved her hand slightly so that she could run her thumb across Sirius' hand; she hoped it was a comforting gesture.

She just couldn't take it in. It was said that the Ministry was the most heavily guarded place in wizarding Britain, perhaps excluding Hogwarts and Gringotts. And yet, not only had the Death Eaters managed to gain access, but they had also succeeded in murdering thirty employees, and no doubt injuring countless more. Victoria shivered at the thought of her parents. They may not have been there last night, but this was the kind of thing that they were constantly having to contend with in their work as Aurors. Maybe next time they wouldn't be so lucky...

Victoria's friends looked just as horrified and dumbfounded as she felt. Sirius' expression was set and determined; Ben and Georgina were holding hands and muttering furiously to each other; Pippa was intently reading the paper, as though hoping to find a disclaimer declaring the news to be one elaborate hoax; Alex was looking into space; Remus and Lucy were sitting close together, both contemplating matters in silence; and, Peter simply looked utterly terrified.

'Surely the match will be cancelled?' asked Pippa after a while.

'Definitely,' agreed Sirius, 'I bet Dumbledore will be called in to the Ministry at any moment.'

A couple of minutes later, James and Lily arrived, accompanied by Mary McDonald, Frank, Alice and Mike Turner. The latter was incredibly pale, and he collapsed into a seat next to Frank, despite being a Ravenclaw.

'Mike?' asked Victoria quietly.

'My cousin was there,' he muttered, his head in his hands, 'My cousin, Jane, was one of the employees.'

Complete silence followed his words. Only Pippa moved. She slid off her part of the bench, walked over to Mike, and wrapped him in a tight hug.

'Vic, what about our parents?' asked James, in a low and urgent voice.

'Apparently they're fine,' Victoria reassured him quickly.

'Apparently?'

'They're okay, mate,' said Sirius, 'Your Dad was quoted in the paper this morning. Neither he nor your Mum were there.'

James let out a deep sigh of relief, and hugged Lily tightly.

Victoria and Sirius were still holding hands. Somehow, it reassured her slightly. There were some constants in the world- even if everything else was being turned upside down- and Sirius Black was one of them.

Just as Pippa and Sirius had guessed, the Slytherin and Ravenclaw match was cancelled, and rescheduled for the following Saturday, which was the day before the students were due to catch the train home for the Christmas holidays.

The match came around incredibly quickly, and to Victoria's great surprise, everyone seemed very much in the mood for a good game of Quidditch. She supposed that it provided a much wanted distraction from what was unfolding outside the castle walls. No arrests had been made in the wake of the Ministry attacks. In fact, no one was entirely sure just which Death Eaters had been involved. Of course this only served to fuel criticism of the Ministry, and its methods of dealing with Voldermort and his followers.

At breakfast before the match, everyone was being very loud. The Slytherin team were surrounded by the rest of their house, all of whom were throwing insults across the Hall- not only at Ravenclaw, but also at the Gryffindors, who were being very vocal in their support for Ravenclaw.

'I hope Hunt and Mulciber get knocked off their brooms,' muttered James, as he watched the Slytherins from the Gryffindor table.

'Don't forget my darling baby brother,' added Sirius, as he helped himself to bacon.

'I just hope Ravenclaw manage a win,' said Victoria, as she ate her own breakfast.

'If they do, it'll be close,' said Pippa, 'Ben and I spied on the Slytherin team practicing the other day. I hate to admit it, but they seem to have improved over the summer.'

'Great,' complained Sirius, 'I don't think I can cope with having to watch Regulus catch the Snitch.'

'Guys, the Ravenclaw team is heading down to the pitch,' Lucy informed them.

Victoria and her friends instantly got to their feet and began cheering, as did the rest of Gryffindor, as well as the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw tables. Meanwhile, the Slytherins booed as loudly as they possibly could. It was definitely going to be an interesting game.

Ten minutes or so later, Victoria and the others made their way through the stands and found a group of seats together.

'It's strange watching rather than playing,' commented Victoria, as she took a seat between Pippa and Lily.

'You say that at the start of every match you watch without fail,' laughed Sirius, leaning around Pippa to throw Victoria one of his trademark grins.

Pippa nudged Victoria with her foot and directed a smirk at her that Victoria was sure Lily also picked up on.

The two teams marched out onto the pitch, and stood in two semi-circles, with Madam Hooch in the middle. As they did, the voice of Mike Turner filled the stadium, introducing each player.

'Mike is commentating?' Victoria asked in surprise.

'Yep,' said Pippa, 'His cousin's funeral is on Monday afternoon. I think he's trying to take his mind off of it.'

Victoria's stomach twanged with sympathy for Mike over his loss. At the same time, a prickle of fear washed over her. Apart from her elderly grandparents who had lived long and full lives, she had yet to experience bereavement. Would she make it through the war without having to? Or would she not be that lucky?

The sound of Madam Hooch's whistle pulled Victoria out of her macabre thoughts.

The Slytherin and Ravenclaw players shot up into the air, and chased after the four balls that began flying around the pitch. Automatically, Victoria scanned the arena for a glimpse of the Snitch, but it was nowhere to be found.

It was a rough game from the start, almost as if Slytherin were attempting to vent some frustration onto the Ravenclaw team. Maybe that was because of all the renewed enmity that had been present ever since last week's attack. Hunt and Mulciber, who were both Beaters, shot the Bludgers around so furiously that Victoria thought it a miracle that all seven of the Ravenclaw players managed to stay seated.

Meanwhile, an intense battle raged over the Quaffle. Unfortunately, Slytherin seemed to be winning. Their Chasers had scored seventy goals before Ravenclaw even managed their first.

'This is horrific,' muttered Sirius, as Slytherin brought the score up to 150-20 in their favour.

Victoria had never seen anything like in a Hogwarts Quidditch match. The Ravenclaw Chasers seemed almost scared of going too near their Slytherin counterparts, as if they feared being cursed.

'I can't watch this,' declared James, covering his eyes with his hand as Slytherin put the Quaffle through the middle hoop once more.

'Look at the Seekers!' screamed Lucy suddenly.

Regulus Black and his Ravenclaw counterpart- Stephen Royle- were speeding across the pitch, chasing a flash of gold. There were mere inches between them, but Regulus was pulling forward, and gradually leaving Stephen behind.

'Your brother's going to do it, Sirius!' moaned James.

'No he's not!' yelled Victoria, jumping up off her seat.

Hunt had sent a very poorly aimed Bludger in the Seekers' directions. Instead of hitting Stephen, it knocked into the back of Regulus' broom, and sent him veering off towards the Hufflepuff stand. Meanwhile, Stephen seized his one chance and practically threw himself off his own broom in order for his fingers to close around the Golden Snitch.

The stadium erupted into applause, as three quarters of its occupants got to their feet in celebration.

'Bloody hell, that was lucky,' gasped Pippa, as they all joined in the clapping.

'170-160 to Ravenclaw,' said Victoria, 'And Stephen catching the Snitch was a complete fluke.'

'Don't be such a spoilsport, Vic!' yelled Sirius, throwing an arm around her shoulders and jumping up and down. 'Let's celebrate Slytherin being beaten!'

'Party in the common room!' declared James excitedly.

'There you go, Vic,' whispered Pippa quietly, as Sirius and James began planning a sneaky trip to Hogsmede for party supplies, 'Tonight is your chance.'

An hour or so later, Victoria had once again found herself on food duty, except this time James had decided to sit in the common room and snog Lily rather than accompany his sister.

Victoria was just heading back through the Entrance Hall, her arms holding bags full of food that the kitchen elves had been all too happy to provide, when she ran into Snape, on his way down to the dungeons.

He shot her his standard look of pure venom as they passed each other, and did his best to knock the bags from her hands.

'Snape, I'm starting to get the suspicion that you're stalking me,' she said, as she walked past him and began making her way up the main staircase.

'I hear your parents survived last Friday night's attack,' he smirked, 'Maybe they won't be quite so lucky next time, eh?'

Victoria paused on the steps and swung round to look down at him. Snape was leaning against one of the walls, clearly awaiting the reaction that he had intended his comment to produce. Well, thought Victoria, if a reaction was what he wanted, then that's what he'd get.

'I hope they last a while longer,' said Victoria in a casual voice, 'They're supposed to be meeting Lily for the first time at Christmas. You know, Lily Evans, my brother's girlfriend.'

Snape's smirk disappeared and his face paled, if that was even possible. It would have been kind to stop, but Victoria reminded herself about his constant threats to James and Sirius, and she pressed on.

'Oh of course you know Lily,' said Victoria, 'You two used to be friends, didn't you?'

Snape remained silent, and merely glared at Victoria, channelling as much hatred as possible into his gaze.

'Yes, that's right,' continued Victoria, 'Lily's told me all about it, you see. All about you, and her, and this friendship that you still think you have.'

'You're going to die,' interjected Snape, his voice low and quiet, 'I promise you that. You, your brother, and Black are all going to die before this war is over.'

'Oh whatever, Snape,' muttered Victoria, rolling her eyes.

And having decided that she'd baited him enough, she turned on her heel and continued up the stairs back to the Gryffindor common room.

She had barely climbed through the portrait hole, when Sirius and Peter came over to relieve her of the food.

'Thanks, Vic. What took you so long, though?' asked Sirius, as he directed Peter to lay the food out on a couple of tables.

'Had a nice chat with Snape.'

Sirius pulled a face, 'Has he washed his hair yet?'

'Judging by appearances, not this year, no.'

'Anyway, enough about Snivellus.' Sirius lifted up a bottle full of amber liquid. 'Firewhiskey?'

'It's barely noon,' Victoria pointed out.

Sirius waved this away, 'And? We're celebrating my brother almost being knocked off of his broom by one of his own teammates.'

'Oh go on then,' sighed Victoria. She could have a couple of glasses, so long as it wasn't any more than that. The last thing she wanted was to get incredibly drunk and declare her feelings for Sirius in front of the entire common room.

'That's the spirit.' Sirius winked at her, and then disappeared to find glasses for them both.

While he was gone, Frank, Alice and Mike Turner wandered over to Victoria to say hello.

'Oh hi, Mike,' she said in surprise, 'Why are you here and not celebrating with Ravenclaw?'

'Oh, erm well the Ravenclaw party hasn't really started yet. So I thought I'd come and chat to Frank for a bit.' As he said this, his eyes wandered across the room to where Pippa was standing, talking to Peter and Mary McDonald.

'Oh yeah, I'm definitely the reason why you came!' laughed Frank sarcastically, grinning at his friend.

Alice slapped her boyfriend's arm, 'Leave him alone, Frank!'

'Here you go, Vic.' Sirius had returned, and was handing her a Firewhiskey.

'Cheers,' he said, tapping his glass against her own, and taking a swig.

'No offence, Mike,' said Sirius, 'But I think that was the worst I've ever seen Ravenclaw play.'

'Tell me about it,' agreed Mike, pulling a disgusted face, 'And trust me, it's even worse when you're having to do the commentary! Oh, hello, Remus.'

Remus had just joined the group. While he looked much better than he had done a few days previously when he'd been ill, he still didn't look quite right. Plus, his smile appeared incredibly forced.

'Alright, Mooney?' asked Sirius, frowning slightly at his friend, 'Where's Lucy?'

'Oh, I think she wanted to talk to Pippa and Georgina instead,' said Remus, in an overly casual voice.

'She really worried about you, Remus,' said Victoria, her tone harsher than she'd intended it to be, 'You won't tell her what's wrong with you. She's got no idea what to think. None of us have.'

'As I've already explained to everyone,' countered Remus, his voice a little cool, 'I'm just prone to illness. I don't enjoy it, and I certainly wish that it wasn't the case. So if the rest of you could just accept what I say then that would be greatly appreciated.'

Victoria was a little taken aback. Remus was normally incredibly mild-mannered and avoided any kind of confrontation at all costs. She opened her mouth to say something else about how they were just worried about him, but Sirius cut her off.

'Wormtail said he was looking for you, mate,' said Sirius, in what Victoria considered to be a wildly transparent attempt to get Remus to leave, therefore avoiding an argument.

'Oh, right, okay,' said Remus, and he headed off across the room towards Peter.

'Something is going on with him,' declared Victoria, 'I don't care that you and the others keep trying to brush it off, Sirius. I'm going to get to the bottom of it.'

'I don't doubt it,' muttered Sirius, taking a sip of his drink.

'What is that supposed to mean?'

'It was a compliment!' yelped Sirius, 'I don't doubt that you'll be able to get to the bottom of it.'

'You're right about that,' agreed Victoria, giving Sirius a stern glare.

He looked at her expression and burst out laughing.

'Hey!' she protested.

He rolled his eyes and took hold of her elbow, 'Come on, Potter. I need to talk to you.'

'What on earth are you doing?' hissed Victoria, as Sirius led her across the common room and out of the portrait hole into the corridor.

'This,' said Sirius, once they were alone in the corridor.

He pushed her back against the wall and kissed her furiously.

'Was that alright, Potter?' he laughed, when they broke apart to catch their breath.

'Oh shut up, Black.' Victoria wrapped her arms around Sirius' neck and pulled his lips back to hers.

**So it finally happened! Next chapter will build on this, and will feature a fluff-filled Christmas Day. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter- it was so lovely to read them, and I was definitely motivated to post this chapter as quickly as possible.**

**As usual, thank you for reading, and please leave me a review! **

**x **


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven **

Sirius Black was one good kisser, thought Victoria happily.

His strong arms were wrapped tightly around her, one at her waist, and the other resting at the back of her neck. Her own hands were on the top of Sirius' chest, just below his shoulders, and she could feel smooth skin and taunt muscle underneath the fabric of his t-shirt. Victoria moved her right hand, and ran it through his thick, dark hair. Sirius seemed to enjoy this, or at least the low groan he made in the back of his throat implied that he did.

When they finally detangled themselves from each other, they were both breathless and grinning.

'I've wanted to do that for so long,' muttered Sirius, pressing his forehead against hers.

'Tell me about it,' agreed Victoria, gently kissing his lips once more.

Sirius chuckled and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close.

'So when exactly did you realise just how sexy and irresistible I am?' he asked, one eyebrow raised in a challenging way.

'Well, I have always been attracted to your modesty,' laughed Victoria. 'But I suppose I started to like you in that way this term.'

Sirius pulled a face. 'Only since the start of term?'

'Yeah,' said Victoria in surprise, 'Why? How long have you liked me for?'

For the first time since she'd known him, Sirius looked mildly embarrassed. In fact, Victoria was sure that his ears had turned slightly pink.

He took a deep breath and pulled a sheepish expression. 'I don't know really, it's hard to say. I suppose I've always seen you as something more than my best mate's sister. It's just taken me a while to realise it, and even longer to act on it. I've had all these girlfriends, but none of them meant anything, and I think that was because they just weren't you, Vic. I told myself that I'd say something to you at the start of this term, but then you had that thing with Alex. Then once you'd broken up I just didn't know if it was too soon, if it'd cause problems. It's been hell, being around you but not being able to be with you. All I want to do is wrap my arms around you and kiss you.'

Victoria was quiet for a very long time once Sirius had finished talking.

'Erm, Vic?' he asked nervously, 'Sorry, I didn't mean for that to sound quite so intense. I-'

'Shut up, Sirius,' muttered Victoria, pressing a finger against his lips. 'That was, without a doubt, the most romantic thing that anyone has ever said to me.'

Sirius broke into an enormous grin, and pulled her even closer to him. They kissed again. It was gentle this time, and hesitant, but still the most passionate experience of Victoria's life so far.

'Go out with me?' whispered Sirius, once their kisses slowed down.

'Of course,' smiled Victoria, her voice just as quiet.

They kissed again for a while, their bodies seemingly in perfect synchronisation. Victoria would have been quite happy to continue doing this all afternoon, but a sudden thought made her pull away.

'What is it?' asked Sirius.

'Well,' began Victoria, warily, 'It's just that I'm worried about telling people.'

'About us?' asked Sirius in confusion, 'Why?'

'Lucy's my best friend, and she liked you last year!'

Sirius pulled a face. 'That was just a little crush. Besides, she and Remus have that thing going on now.'

'And then there's Alex,' pressed Victoria, 'He and I were dating only a few weeks ago!'

'He knows you two weren't suited,' countered Sirius, 'He said so himself. These aren't reasons to keep things secret, Vic.'

'What about James?' asked Victoria triumphantly; she had saved her trump card until last.

'Fine, you've got me there,' sighed Sirius, 'I don't particularly fancy being murdered by your brother anytime soon.'

'It's not that I don't want people to know about us,' insisted Victoria, leaning towards him and taking his hands in hers, 'It's just that I think the idea of us being together could upset quite a few people.'

'So what are you thinking?' asked Sirius slowly, 'Because I don't want to be sneaking around for months.'

'It won't be for that long,' Victoria reassured him. 'Maybe we keep it quiet over the Christmas holidays, gauge everyone's reaction, and then come clean at the start of next term.'

Sirius sighed deeply, 'Fine. If you think that's best.'

'I wouldn't do this for anyone else, Potter,' he groaned, pulling her against him and pressing his lips to hers.

The following morning, the sixth year girls' dormitory experienced its usual mad panic, as Victoria, Pippa and Lucy rushed around trying to pack up all their belongings. Meanwhile, Georgina- who had had her own possessions all packed up five days previously- lounged on her bed and painted her fingernails.

'You could give us some help, Georgie,' pointed out Pippa, as she crawled under her bed to retrieve a lone sock that was making a bid for freedom.

'Oh no,' countered Georgina, 'I've been telling you lot to pack for a week now. It's your own faults that it's been left to the last minute again.'

'Alright, Miss Pious,' grumbled Victoria, as she stuffed her Quidditch robes into her already overflowing trunk.

Truth be told, Victoria was quite grateful that everyone was completely distracted by packing. If they'd all been sitting around talking, then she probably would have found it hard not to talk about Sirius, and she was still adamant that people shouldn't know about them just yet.

'Anyone know a good spell to close trunks?' asked Lucy, looking down at her own trunk, which had about five times too much stuff in it.

'Yep,' said Pippa, 'It's called _getridofexcessclothes-ious._'

'Very helpful,' muttered Lucy sarcastically.

Lucy had been in a poor mood all morning and, indeed for most of the party last night. Victoria and Sirius had reluctantly parted so not to rouse suspicion, and had returned to the party to see their friends. Rather than spending the night laughing away with Remus as she had done the last time, Lucy had pouted away in the corner for a few hours before going to bed early. Victoria couldn't help but feel annoyed on her friend's behalf. No matter how many times Remus and the Marauders tried to brush it under the rug, Victoria knew that something strange was going on.

After much effort, Victoria, Lucy and Pippa finished their packing, and joined Georgina in taking their trunks down the staircase. They loaded them onto the trolleys that were waiting in the common room, and then made their way down to where the carriages were waiting to take them to Hogsmede station.

'I've never known a term go so quickly,' commented Georgina lightly, as the carriage which the four girls were sitting in began to move.

'Maybe that's because you've found the love of your life this time,' reasoned Pippa.

'Yes, maybe,' agreed Georgina, completely missing the sarcasm in Pippa's voice.

Victoria laughed, and expected Lucy to be doing the same. However, when she glanced over at her friend, she saw that she was merely staring out of the carriage window, completely oblivious to the other girls' conversation.

They reached the station and climbed onto the train. Even when they found a compartment, Lucy took a seat by the window and sat in silence. Victoria was just about to attempt to speak to her, when the compartment door slid open, and Sirius, Remus and Peter wandered inside.

'Alright everyone?' asked Sirius casually.

He took a seat next to Victoria and accidently-on-purpose brushed his knee against hers. Victoria grinned to herself and moved her hand up to push a strand of hair away from her face. As she did so, she touched Sirius' shoulder for a very brief moment.

'I'm fine, thanks Sirius,' she said, giving him an innocent smile. 'How about you? Hungover?'

'Yeah,' admitted Sirius, pulling a face.

'Poor you!' said Victoria sarcastically. She patted his knee sympathetically, for perhaps a bit longer than was necessary.

Sirius groaned quietly, and looked at her through the corner of his eyes. Victoria winked back at him.

The compartment door slid open again, and Ben and Alex entered.

'It's a bit full in here!' protested Pippa, as Ben squeezed himself in between her and Georgina with much difficulty. Alex, meanwhile, took the last scrap of seat between Peter and the door.

'Don't you two dare start kissing!' Pippa warned Ben and Georgina sternly. 'I'm way too close to you for comfort.'

Victoria, however, was distracted by Lucy. In the chaos of everyone squeezing into seats, Lucy had ended up sitting very close to Remus. He had attempted to start a conversation with her, but had been met with stony silence. Instead, Lucy was once again staring out of the window, oblivious to what was going on inside the compartment.

Victoria was just wondering whether she should ask Lucy to accompany her to the bathroom as a pretext for being able to talk to her friend, when the door once again opened.

'Oh dear God,' muttered Sirius, as James and Lily strolled in. 'There's no room! If anyone else comes in then Vic will have to sit on my lap!'

Butterflies shot through Victoria's stomach at his words. She shot him another grin that she hoped was subtle enough for no one to detect.

'We'll find space, Padfoot,' James reassured Sirius. Then he walked over to Peter and nudged him out of his seat with his foot.

'So I guess I'm sitting on the floor then,' huffed Peter, as James and Lily squeezed themselves into the space he'd previously been occupying.

'Take one for the team, Wormtail,' ordered James.

'I'm the only member of the team that ever seems to take one!' protested Peter.

'That's true,' agreed Remus, 'Remember the time when Peter got the blame for you two having-'

A sudden movement caused him to break off his speech. With great difficultly, Lucy extracted herself from the over-full seats and walked straight out of the compartment. As she went, she muttered 'bathroom.'

Victoria and Pippa exchanged a concerned look.

'Erm, I think I might go too,' said Victoria, pulling herself up from her seat and hurrying out of the compartment after her friend.

'Lucy!'

Lucy was about half way down the corridor when she stopped, and turned round to face Victoria.

'I was just going to the loo,' she said.

'Oh don't give me that,' said Victoria quickly, 'What's wrong? What on earth is going on with you and Remus?'

'Nothing,' muttered Lucy in a low voice, her blue eyes glinting with a kind of furious determination. 'Absolutely nothing is going on between us. He has a secret and doesn't trust me enough to share it.'

'But surely it's not that important?' asked Victoria.

Lucy shrugged. 'Who knows? Who knows what the hell his problem is. All I know is that I no longer care.'

'Really?' asked Victoria sceptically.

'Yes!' insisted Lucy, 'He's had his chance. We've hung out together all term. Next term I'm going back to the old Lucy.'

'The old Lucy?'

'Yes, the old Lucy. You know, loads of dates, hot guys, that kind of thing.' She flicked her blonde ringlets over her shoulder, as if to prove a point.

'Alright,' said Victoria, 'If that's what you really want to do, then obviously that's fine. However, I do think you should talk to Remus. You've been such good friends, you really should sort this out.'

Lucy shrugged again. 'That's up to him. I've already made all the effort that I'm prepared to make. It's up to him now.'

'I'd forgotten just how stubborn you are,' smiled Victoria.

'That's me,' grinned Lucy.

'Are you ready to head back to the compartment now that you've had your dramatic storm out?'

Lucy grimaced. 'Sure. Let's go.'

By the time they got back to the compartment, Frank and Alice had also joined the group. The sheer amount of people within the small space meant that Victoria and Lucy struggled to even get inside the compartment.

'This is getting ridiculous!' exclaimed Victoria, 'Why on earth didn't we just get two?'

'Come here, Lucy, you can sit on my knee,' laughed Pippa. She stopped laughing, however, when Lucy took her up on this offer.

'Bloody hell,' huffed Pippa jokingly, 'I think you need to lay off the turkey this Christmas.'

Lucy elbowed her in the chest by way of response.

'Do you want my seat, Vic?' offered Sirius.

'That's bloody chivalrous of you!' commented James in surprise, 'In fourth year you once made me sit on the floor for the entire train journey!'

Sirius ignored him and got up. Victoria smiled at him in thanks and took a seat. Meanwhile, Sirius sat down on the floor in front of her.

He turned his head back round to face her, 'Just to warn you, Vic. In exchange for my generosity, I will be using your legs as a head rest.'

Sirius leant back against her legs, and the feeling of it drove Victoria a little crazy. All she wanted to do was reach down and run her hands through his hair. Oh and then jump on him and kiss him senseless...

The train journey was fun, due to such a large group of them being together, but was also undeniably long. By the time they arrived at King's Cross, darkness had fallen, and it was all a little confusing unloading luggage and saying goodbyes with a lack of light.

'So I'll see you all next term!' exclaimed Lucy, hugging Victoria, Pippa and Georgina all at the same time.

'I can't believe you're dumping us in order to go on a jaunt to the south of France. How bloody selfish of you!' moaned Pippa sarcastically.

'But you two are still coming to mine after Christmas, right?' Georgina asked Victoria and Pippa.

'Definitely,' confirmed Victoria, 'the 28th, yeah?'

'Yes,' grinned Georgina, and she gave them all one final hug before disappearing off towards her parents.

James appeared at Victoria's side. 'Ready to go, Vic?'

'Yep. Help me with my trunk?'

James sighed dramatically and took hold off her trunk. Together, they made their way over to their parents.

The first thing Victoria noticed was just how haggard Catherine and Henry Potter looked. Their faces were both more lined than she remembered, and they were also a little pale, as if they weren't getting enough rest. Despite this, however, both of them broke into wide smiles at the sight of Victoria and James.

'Hello,' grinned their mum, hugging both of her children tightly.

'Good time?' asked their dad cheerfully.

'The best,' replied James, who would no doubt always remember this as The Term When He Finally Wore Down Lily Evans.

'Now, where is Sirius?' asked their mum, scanning the crowd.

'Right here,' grinned Sirius, appearing at Victoria's side, seemingly out of nowhere.

'Oh there you are,' said Catherine. 'So you're coming to ours for Christmas, yes?'

'Wouldn't miss it,' said Sirius, 'Especially since it's also Vic's birthday.'

'Is it?' asked James, a confused expression on his face.

'You make that joke every year,' sighed Victoria, 'And it has never once been funny.'

'We should get going,' said Henry, glancing down at his watch, 'The London rush hour traffic is going to be horrific.'

'Oh Dad! Don't tell me you've driven here?' complained James.

'Of course we have,' said Henry in surprise, 'James, I've told you this before. The more we integrate Muggle things into our lives, the more the wizarding world is likely to accept them.'

'Yeah I get that. But that means a couple of hours stuck in a car! We'd be home already if we just used Apparition!'

'Oh shush, James,' said Catherine, 'Anyway, Sirius, are you sure you'll be okay getting back to your flat?'

'You treat him more like a son than you do me!' complained James.

'That's because we like him better,' retorted Catherine.

'I'll be fine, thanks,' laughed Sirius. 'I'll see you on Christmas Day.'

He waved to Catherine and Henry, clapped James on the back, and hugged Victoria.

'I'll write to you once I'm home,' he whispered in her ear, just before they broke apart.

Victoria watched him walk away through the crowd, a slightly sad feeling washing over her. Maybe she'd been wrong to suggest they keep their relationship a secret. If she hadn't had said that, then they could have told her parents today, and they could have happily kissed goodbye.

'Okay, let's go then,' said Henry, clapping his hands together, and relieving James of Victoria's trunk.

The family walked through King's Cross station together, attracting a few glances from Muggles due to the fact that both Victoria and James were carrying owls with them. The car was parked a couple of streets away. Despite James' protests, Victoria actually quite liked the BMW that her Dad had purchased a couple of years previously. It was roomy inside (due to magical enhancements, of course), and Victoria quite enjoyed the feeling of being driven around.

A couple of hours later, the car pulled up outside their house. Victoria's family lived in a large country house, set just a little way out of a small village. It was in the middle of nowhere, and a lot of people would have found the place boring, but Victoria loved it. The gardens were both large and sheltered enough to play Quidditch in, the kitchen featured an enormous wooden table where Victoria had spent many an hour chatting away with her mum, and there was a quaint little Muggle pub only a few minutes' walk away (admittedly her parents didn't know about the latter.)

'Is it nice to be home?' Victoria's Mum asked her, as they strolled down the little path towards the front door.

'Definitely,' answered Victoria truthfully.

In no time at all Christmas Day came around. Victoria woke on Christmas morning to find a white view from her window- the entire landscape had been coated in a thick layer of snow. She grinned to herself, and sat on the sill of her bay window for a while, looking out at how pretty everything was. It was during moments like this that it was possible to forget that there was a war on.

The sound of the doorbell interrupted her musings.

'Bloody hell he's early!' yawned James, as he dashed past Victoria's door, on his way downstairs to let Sirius in.

Victoria's stomach did some kind of acrobatic leap, and she grinned to herself.

Damn, she was still in her pyjamas. That wouldn't do. Channelling her inner Georgina, Victoria quickly changed into a red dress that she'd been saving for Christmas Day. She curled the front strands of her hair with her wand, and swept a minimal amount of make-up across her face. She was rather pleased with the end result when she looked in the mirror.

Once she was satisfied with her appearance, Victoria wandered downstairs into the kitchen. Her parents were both dressed, and were handing out glasses of champagne to Sirius and James, the latter of whom was still in his pyjamas.

Sirius, on the other hand, was dressed in dark jeans and a button down shirt that unfairly highlighted his muscular chest. The mere sight of him caused Victoria to catch her breath.

'Merry Christmas!' she called to everyone, to announce her presence.

'Blimey, Vic, you're making me look like a slob,' complained James, taking in her attire, 'Happy birthday, by the way.'

'Merry Christmas, and happy birthday, darling,' smiled Catherine, kissing her daughter on the check. Victoria's Dad did the same.

Victoria, however, was focused on Sirius. He was watching her, watching her as if he never wanted to take his eyes off of her.

'Merry Christmas, Sirius,' she said quietly. Luckily, her parents and James were chatting away, and weren't paying attention.

'Merry Christmas,' he repeated, 'And happy birthday.'

He crossed the space between them and kissed her lightly on the cheek. Even this lightest touch sent a shiver running all the way down Victoria's spine. Did everyone feel like this when they started a new relationship? Or was it just her and Sirius? Victoria had only ever had casual flings before- perhaps not including Alex- and she'd never experienced feelings like this.

They were interrupted by Henry Potter clearing his throat and raising his champagne glass.

'Merry Christmas, everyone,' he said smiling around at them all, 'and happy birthday, Vic. Let's have a wonderful day.'

Everyone lifted their own glasses, clinked them together, and took a sip. The champagne immediately warmed Victoria up.

Maybe she should exercise a little caution, she thought, as she had another taste. A few more glasses and she'd probably jump Sirius in front of everyone.

After they'd all drank their champagne, and been plied with more by Henry- who was force-filling everyone's glass- the five of them moved into the sitting room. A large, green tree stood in the corner of the room, underneath which sat countless presents. The little girl inside Victoria gasped with delight at the sight of them.

Victoria was very pleased with her haul. The brand new Cleansweep model from her parents, a copy of _Quidditch Through The Ages _from James, jewellery from various family members, and luxury chocolates from her friends. Sirius gave her a large box of Chocolate Frogs, and Victoria pretended to be delighted with them. In reality, she and Sirius had already agreed to exchange their real presents in private, so not to arouse suspicion.

The rest of the day passed by in a perfect haze. With significant help from their house elf, Catherine produced a delicious turkey dinner that left everyone rubbing their stomachs, after having eaten twice their own body weight in food. After dinner, James (who had drunk a little too much mulled wine) bored everyone to death by talking about his top ten favourite things about Lily Evans; he only shut up when Sirius threw a mince pie at him.

Just before midnight, everyone decided that after a day of food, drink and presents, it was time to call it a night. Victoria was more than a little disappointed that she hadn't had the chance to spend some time with Sirius alone, but there wasn't much she could do in front of everyone. Therefore, she contented herself with the sight of Sirius retreating into the spare bedroom, before going into her own room.

Feeling very sleepy all of a sudden, she pulled on her pyjamas and climbed into bed. It had just started snowing outside again, as if cementing a great day.

Victoria had been rolling around in bed for perhaps half an hour, attempting to fall asleep, when her door was quietly pushed open.

'Vic?'

'Sirius?'

'Well who else did you expect?' he chuckled.

In the darkness, Victoria could only make out the vague outline of his shape. But she could see enough to realise that he was moving towards her.

'Budge up,' he instructed, once he was standing by her bed.

Hardly daring to breath, Victoria moved over, and watched as Sirius climbed into bed with her. He wrapped his arms around her, and pulled her close to him underneath the duvet. It was simultaneously the sexiest and most comforting moment of her life.

'What are you doing here?' she whispered, conscious of the fact that James was only a short way away across the landing.

'I wanted to say happy birthday and merry Christmas properly,' he replied, kissing her gently.

Victoria smiled against his lips, and then pulled away.

'I have your present,' she said, 'Your proper present. Not a box of Bertie Botts' Every Flavour Beans.'

'Well it'll have to be good to beat them,' chuckled Sirius, 'Actually, I have your real present too.'

He produced a think, rectangular package seemingly from nowhere, just as Victoria handed him a present of a similar size and shape.

'Lumos,' muttered Sirius, and a dim, white light lit up Victoria's bed.

'Hey!' she protested, 'It's my seventeenth today! I should be doing that!'

'If it takes you that long to remember that you're of age, then no, you really shouldn't be,' laughed Sirius gently.

'Oh shut up!' muttered Victoria.

The sudden light had served to completely distract her. She could now clearly see that Sirius was lying in her bed. Sirius Black was in her bed. God, about ninety percent of the female population of Hogwarts would kill to be in her position right now. Plus, he did look particularly delectable tonight.

'Shall we open them on three?' suggested Victoria.

'Alright. One, two, three.'

Victoria tore the wrapping paper off her gift and gasped aloud. Sirius had given her a photograph inside a beautiful silver frame. It was of him and her, the day that they had won the Quidditch Cup the previous year. She remembered the photo being taken, as well as the feelings that she'd experienced. Her and Sirius were jumping up and down, hugging each other as though they had no care in the world. It was perfect.

'I guess great minds think alike,' laughed Sirius, holding up the present that Victoria had given him.

'I guess so,' giggled Victoria.

She had indeed given Sirius the exact same framed photograph. She had spent ages searching for the perfect present, before deciding that something simple and meaningful was likely to impress him more than anything expensive. Plus, she had always loved that photograph.

Sirius gently prised the frame from Victoria's hand, and placed it on the floor with his own. Then he pulled her even closer to him- so close that Victoria could barely breath.

'Happy birthday, Vic.'

'Merry Christmas, Sirius,' she breathed.

And with that, they pressed their lips against each other's, and collapsed into the feelings and sensations that only come with a new, teenage relationship.

**Wow. Three updates in less than a week! I'm quite pleased with myself! I have to admit, what spurred me on was the lovely reviews that I have been receiving recently. I appreciate them so much, so please keep them coming. If you have comment- good or bad!- then just let me know.**

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter, even if it was a little fluffy! I can promise that in the next chapter people will find out about Vic and Sirius' relationship.**

**Until next time... x **


End file.
